Minor Setback Part II
by SweetSauce
Summary: This is the sequel to Minor Setback. It further explores House's relationship with Cuddy. How will House handle his relationship with Cuddy, a teenage son, and the return of an old flame? Just posted the final chapter. Enjoy!
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer:** All rights belong to Fox and David Shore. **  
Author's Note:** First of all, a big thanks to my beta cecilee who patiently went through drafts of this chapter. Second, a big cyber hug to everyone who sent PMs encouraging me to write a sequel to _**Minor Setback**_. Here it is…I hope you like it and don't forget to click the "Review this story/chapter" button at the bottom of this page.

***

House limps out of the elevator and sees his son flirting with the candy striper down the hallway. After catching a glimpse of his father, Jake immediately says goodbye to Kaitlin.  
"Hey Dad"  
"Hey"  
"How was the doctor's appointments? Are the twins okay?"  
"Yeah"  
"And?"  
"We went to the Perinatologist. He confirmed that the spawns' heartbeats are fine. There's no cord entanglement so blood and oxygen flow are good too. However, we found a little surprise at the end."  
"That's great news! What's the surprise? It's a bit too early to find the babies gender, isn't it"  
"Actually, we spotted the spawns holding hands in your mom's womb."  
"That's actually sweet. I bet everyone went gaga over that picture."  
"Yeah, the Perinatologist actually made extra copies of the sonogram pictures so he'll have a souvenir. Apparently, he has never seen anything like it before."  
"I bet mom got a kick out of that too."  
"Yeah, your mom got all teary eyes and said that the twins are holding hands to keep each other company."  
"That sound like something she would say. But, did they know what cause mom's discharge?"  
"After the Perinatologist appointment, we went to her OB/GYN. Keeler has a theory and she ordered your mom to stay off her feet and take it easy for awhile."  
"Okay. That sounds reasonable."  
"Jake, mom will not be able to come with us to Boston. I think its best that she stays home and rest."  
"Of course."

"Your mom said you have a list of stuff that you need for your apartment?"  
"Yeah, stuff for the kitchen, bathroom, and bedroom stuff."  
House hands a key to Jake "Here's the key to my storage place, get what you can use" and hands Jake his credit card "buy what you need."  
"Thanks. And Dad, can I borrow your car too?"  
House grunts his approval.  
"Oh, do you mind if we get one of those small rental truck?"  
"How many stuff are you planning to haul with you to Boston?"  
"I really want to bring my motorcycle. We can drive the truck one way, drop it off and you can fly back home. That also mean you don't have to drive back home by yourself."  
"I thought your mom said you're not allowed to ride the motorcycle until you're seventeen and legally allowed to drive it?"  
"Yeah, seventeen is the minimum age in New Jersey but in Massachusetts all I need is a parental consent."  
"And which parent will be consenting for you to drive your 'death trap'?**"  
** Jake smiles cheekily and answers "The coolest Dad in the world, which happens to be mine."

***

"Wow! Dinner at Gratella; I'm very impressed" Cuddy says in amazement after House opens the door to the small Italian restaurant.  
"Of course, only the best for the mother of my children."  
"Greg, you know that no matter how much you (_figuratively speaking_) 'wine and dine' me, we still can't have sex for at least a week, right?"  
"I know. I was there when Keeler made that terrible advice. Anyway, we're here to enjoy a good dinner." _Dr. Keeler thinks that Cuddy's discharge is cause by irritation of the cervix which is brought on by sexual intercourse. _  
"Are we celebrating a special occasion?"  
"Nothing special. I just want to take my girl some place she's always wanted to go."  
Cuddy smiled at House's response. She is going over her menu when she sees House looking at another table. Cuddy follows House's gaze, thinking to herself that "he better not be ogling at another woman or he won't know what hit him."

"House! Did you take me to dinner so you can spy on our son's date?"  
"No, so we can spy on his date. Aren't you curious what he sees in her?"  
"Kaitlin is a very nice girl. Most girls her age would rather spend their free time hanging out with their friends in the mall, but she chooses to volunteer in the hospital."  
"That just mean she has no friends to hangout with and her parents are too controlling for her to work at some retail store after school."  
"Ok, her dad works down in accounting. But, what's wrong with having your kid work at the same place as you do? Talk about the pot calling the kettle black. At least her dad doesn't follow her during her dates."  
"We're not following them on their date. It's just coincidence that we're here having dinner at the same restaurant. Besides, If our son sees us and thinks that we are planning to follow him, then that might just discourage him from doing anything stupid with her."  
"Oh for god sake, Greg. It's his last night in town, let him enjoy it. I think it's romantic that he's taking her back to where they had their first date."  
"Schmaltzy! That's what it is. Unless, of course he's breaking up with her then..."  
"House!"

***

As Cuddy waves at House and Jake goodbye, she can't help but feel sad. She thinks to herself "It's going to be a very quiet and lonely few days without the boys."  
Meanwhile, both father and son begin their five hours drive up to Boston.  
"I saw you and mom at Gratella last night. Did you finally pop the question to her?"  
"The only one who's ready to pop anything is your mom."  
"I'm serious, Dad."  
"Your mom has been begging me take her to Gratella for awhile. I also wanted to check up on you and the stripper."  
"You see Kaitlin in the hospital all the time and you've never once says hi to her. Why the sudden interest in her last night?"  
"It wasyour last night in town, your mom and I wanted to make sure you didn't do anything stupid."  
Jake rolls his eyes and says "Don't worry, I'm not marrying the first girl I get involve with."  
"You sure about that?"  
"Yeah, I have a family tradition to keep up. I need to make sure that she bears at least three spawns of mine before I'll even consider marrying her" Jake replies in a sarcastic tone.  
"You learn well, grasshopper. One day, I may let you take the pebble from my hand."

After an hour of driving, House feels a sharp pain on his right leg so he immediately pulls over by the side of the road.  
"Dad, are you okay?"  
"Yeah, just a little leg cramps" as House dry swallows a couple of Vicodin.  
"Dad, let me drive the rest of the way."  
"Are you sure? This is not my rinky-dink car."  
"I can handle interstate driving. We'll switch when we enter Boston."  
"Let me know if you get tired or anything, okay?"  
Jake nods at his dad.

The rest of the drive is spent discussing and arguing about various topics. First, there was the heated discussion as to whether embryonic stem cell should be clone to grow spare body parts.  
Then they argued which one is the better football conference (AFC or NFC), then which one is the better baseball league (American or National), later on the topic turns to the greatest baseball of all time (Babe Ruth or Jackie Robinson). Afterwards, the duo discusses whether Ella Fitzgerald or Billie Holiday has better scat vocalization techniques, then which one is the most talented Beatles (John Lennon or Paul McCartney), the greatest guitarist of all time (no contest, Jimi Hendrix) and whether the night janitor, Lou is a cross dresser or not. The topic of their conversation ranges from the sublime to the ridiculous. One thing for sure, if there's such a thing as a Trivial Pursuit Bowl, these two are force to be reckon with.

As planned, House takes over driving after they get off Mass turnpike. Since they only rented a 10' truck, House doesn't have a hard time finding a parking space. After checking-in with the building manager, Jake is given the key to his place. He is also introduced to a mammoth size student named Jason, who apparently was assigned by Dr. Martin to help him.  
Jason brings a bellman's cart with him to help unload Jake's stuff from the truck. House has opened the back door of the rental truck and is sitting by the door.  
"Hey dad. I got the key to the apartment so we can start unloading."  
"Who's the bellhop?"  
"Dad, this is Jason, he'll be helping us unload my stuff. Jason, this is my dad, Dr. House."  
House nods and hands him a box.  
They decide that Jason will unload all the stuff from the truck to the cart and bring it up. Jake will wait up in the apartment and unload the cart to his room. Of course, House remains on the truck to supervise (_and pontificate_).

After about half-hour, they have emptied the truck. As they wait for Jake to come down to join them, House strikes up a conversation with Jason.  
Jason is about House's height (_six foot three_) but weighs about eighty pounds heavier than him. House thinks to himself "His neck is about the size of my thigh."  
"Hey Justin, do you play football or something?"  
"Yes sir, I'm a linebacker for Harvard Crimson. And my name is Jason, sir."  
"Of course, you're in med school too?"  
"I wish. No sir, I'm still an undergrad. I'll be a sophomore Biology major in September."  
"Oh, the undergrad's semester doesn't start until next month?"  
"Yes sir, I work at the Dean's office during summer months. My family wouldn't have been able to afford a Harvard education for me (_or my sibling_), if not for my football scholarship and my job at the Dean's office."  
"Are you interested in earning few extra bucks?"  
"Doing what, sir?"  
"Just keeping an eye on my boy for me."  
"I heard he's some kind of genius. And from what I can see, Dr. House, I think your son can take care of himself."  
House nods and thinks he actually likes this kid, "I think he'll be fine too. But it'll really take a load off his mom's mind if he has a big brother of sort to watch over him. You know what I mean?"  
"Of course sir. I have three younger siblings myself. I'll make sure to keep an eye on Jake."  
"Thank you. And if you need a recommendation to med school, be sure to call me" House slips a hundred dollar bill and his business card to Jason.  
After seeing both the money and House's card, Jason replies "I will most definitely contact you, Dr. House."

House stays overnight and to make sure that Jake is properly situated. He flies back home to Princeton the following day.

_**Next Chapter:**__ Back to THE HUDDY Show._


	2. Chapter 2

***

"House! Your department is funded to have three fellows. You already interviewed nine fully-qualified candidates, just pick two more and be done with this process," Cuddy yells.  
"Cud…dy! I have Chase and we're doing fine. I don't need to babysit two more fellows."  
"One case a month is not fine. At least when you didn't have a fellow, you had a handful of consults a week."  
"Well, your boy arranged those for me. What do you want me to do lure him out of med school?"  
"Of course not. Ask Dr. Chase to actively look for cases, not just work on the onesI shove by your door."  
"Can't."  
"Can't or won't? Don't give me the excuse that Dr. Chase can't do it because you and I know that's a lie. "  
"The cases he finds are boring."  
"Then at least reply to your consult requests. I'm getting complaints from other doctors that you haven't been responding to their mails."  
"Again, blame your son. I told him not to answer those damn mails. Now, these idiots have unrealistic expectations of me."  
"Why can't they expect the same level of service? You now have a very qualified fellow on your staff."  
"You want me to trust that idiot Chase to answer my mails?"  
Already tired of arguing, **"**House, hire two more fellows and make sure you can trust one of them to answer your mails. Or else…"  
"Or else what?" House raises his eyebrow and reminds Cuddy "we do not bring work home."  
"I was just going to say …or else, do your own job! Why can't you answer your own page; read your own mail; and do your own paperwork like the rest of us?"

Wilson is by the nurse station waiting for House to come out of Cuddy's office. He asks Nurse Brenda "how long have those two been at it?"  
Brenda replies "the screaming? About half-hour. I really don't know why she puts up with him at work and at home."  
Wilson smirks and replies "arguing is their version of foreplay."  
A younger nurse who is standing nearby interjects**;** "I heard Dr. House is very well-endowed and great in the sack- that's why she puts up with him." Brenda almost snaps her own neck to give the young nurse a dagger look. The young nurse immediately scurries away, while Wilson can't stop sniggering. He thinks to himself "I bet House spread that rumor himself."

Back in Cuddy's office, House is about to yell back at Cuddy when he sees her wince and starts rubbing her belly.  
"Lise, what's wrong?"  
"I think the babies are playing soccer. They've been kicking none stop since you got in my office."  
House places a hand on Cuddy's tummy and feels a twitch. He then puts the other hand and feels a faint flutter on the upper part of her belly. Meanwhile, he sees something move at Cuddy's mid-section as if somebody is poking at it. This is the first time he has ever felt and seen the twins move and he can't help but be in awed.  
Cuddy even catchesa glimpse of a smile on House's face.  
All of a sudden, House declares "I need to see them now!"  
Cuddy quickly reacts "What? Greg, you can't just run a sonogram on me whenever you feel like it."  
"Why not? They're playing soccer on a limited playing field. I want to make sure that they're all right."  
Cuddy immediately realizes that House is probably just excited to see the babies move. She initially felt the babies move when she was about 16 weeks, but couldn't share the experience with House until now. She gives in and says "I'll agree just this one time. Don't get any idea that you'll have unlimited access to my uterus."  
House smiles and states "Ok, meet me in the room next to the coma guy."  
Cuddy asks House if the room is available and if there's even a sonogram machine in it.  
House simply nods and gives her a smug smirk.

***

As House is leaving Cuddy's office, Wilson grabs him for a quick consult.  
"No can do buddy. I got places to go, people to meet."  
"House, it'll only take fifteen minutes of your time."  
House looks over at Cuddy and she gives him a nod informing him to stay and she'll wait.  
Cuddy passes the two doctors on the way to the elevator. Even though she's now 20 weeks pregnant with twins, House still can't help but check out Cuddy's ass as she walks by.

House follows Wilson in the exam room and blurts out "I felt the twins move for the first time just a few minutes ago."  
"Wow! What did you feel?"  
"I felt a faint twitch and a flutter. Lise said they've been kicking the whole time I was in her office."  
"Maybe the babies now recognize your voices and get excitedwhenever you two bicker."  
"Yeah? It's so real. I mean being able to touch the babies not just see them on the sonogram. It's…it's awesome."  
Wilson smiles at the realization that House has called them babies, not spawns or fetuses.

Cuddy takes a peek at the room next to the coma guy and notices that it's equipped with an ultrasound machine as House promised. She makes a mental note to herself to check if anyone has reported a missing sonogram somewhere else in the hospital.  
Before long, House limps in to the room and locks the door behind him.  
"You got Wilson all squared away?"  
House nods and instructs Cuddy "come on take your clothes off and hop in the bed for me." He stops for a second and grins "Ok, that sounded way hotter than it supposes to be."  
Cuddy smiles at House's remark, takes her maternity pants off andlays on the bed as instructed.  
House lifts her shirt up a bit and gently places the gel on her belly. He turns on the sonogram machine and fiddles with the transducer.  
Cuddy feels the babies moving again and says "I think the babies now recognizes our voicesand tend to go crazy when you're around."  
House smiles and replies "Yeah, Wilson just said the same exact thing."  
Cuddyis about to quiz him as to when Wilson made the statement when House shushes her.  
House has spotted the babies. One of the baby is up top in the breech position, while the other is transverse laying sideways.  
The top baby is definitely getting acquainted with Cuddy's ribs and is kicking like crazy. The bottom one has more restrained legs but very active hands. Both Greg and Lisa begin laughing when the bottom baby starts waving at them. House nicknames the twins the **Beck**_ham_s—the top one for its kicking skills & the bottom one for mugging at the sonogram.

"I'll be darned! Do you see that, Lise?"  
"What Greg?"  
House points at something on the screen and says "hmm…I guess, you'll have to put up with a **House **full of boys."


	3. Chapter 3

***

Cuddy is on the 25th week of her pregnancy. She now weighs 20 pounds heavier than her regular weight and her belly is now the size of a soccer ball. The increased in weight has placed a tremendous load on Cuddy's back and feet. She now uses the sofa more than the desk in her office; she also has given up on her beloved high heels for ballerina flat slip-ons shoes. She too has cut back on the number of hours she stays in the hospital. She still works as hard but she now does her paperwork in the luxury of her home.

Meanwhile, the **Beck**_ham_s continues to grow and have developed unique personalities. Beck is the feisty one who kicks non-stop whenever he hears his father's voice, and he now weighs 2.0 lbs. Ham continues to mug whenever his father takes a sonogram. House takes immense pleasure when Ham gave the Perinatologist the finger during one of Cuddy's checkups. Ham is also heavier than Beck and is tipping the scale at 2.4 lbs.

House continues to be a jerk at work, but he leaves that persona at work when he comes home at night. He and Cuddy have developed a routine that includes walking around the neighborhood after dinner, taking warm baths together, giving her a nightly backrub, and playing a mini-concerto to lull the babies to sleep. On weekends, the twins get a special treat from their big brother. Jake will habitually call in and read them a story by phone. Cuddy is simply beside herself when she's surrounded by all her boys.

***

Cuddy continues to nag House about hiring more fellows, doing his clinic duties, and taking on more cases. But House being House simply ignores Cuddy's orders about hiring more fellows, hides when he's scheduled to do clinic duties, and only do consults if it's requested by Wilson.

One day, House arrive at work early (_not because he wants to) _because Cuddy has an early doctor's appointment. House was drinking his coffee by the balcony when he notices something moving in Wilson's office. A quick peek by the glass door reveals a sleeping Wilson. House checks his watch to confirm that it's 7:45 in the morning. House thinks to himself "It seems our happily-married doctor has slept in his office last night." He opens the balcony door and shouts "oh my god! I didn't even know you're here."  
Wilson almost fell off the sofa and groggily says "for god's sake, do you have to be so loud?"  
"So, what happened to you? Did wife number 3 kick you out?"  
Wilson unconsciously rubs his neck and replies "well, good morning to you too."  
"Seriously, why are you sleeping in your office?"  
"Okay, okay… Julie and I had a little tiff last night."  
House takes quick scan at Wilson's office and replies "bullshit! If it's a little tiff, you won't have time to pack up an overnight bag. She kicked you out!"  
"It's just temporary until she simmers down."

"What did you do?"  
"Nothing! She accused me of having an affair."  
"With Debbie from accounting or that new nurse from Pediatrics?"  
"No! I'm not having an affair with Debbie or anyone else."  
In a sarcastic tone, House replies "Right. And I don't enjoy Lisa's funbags too."

Wilson tries to deflect by asking "why are you here so early?"  
"Lise has an early appointment with her Perinatologist this morning. Anyway, she wants to come in and finish up some crap for the board meeting before her appointment."  
"Oh yeah, we have a board meeting this afternoon. You're on the agenda again."  
House raises his brow and asks "what's it about?"  
"Farell wants to know why diagnostic should be classified as a department given that you only have one staff. He wants Cuddy to downgrade diagnostic to a section branch of the department of Pathobiology. The change of status will free up all the funds allocated to your department."  
"She didn't mention that to me."  
"Yeah? Why don't you just hire a couple of fellows instead of making her go through all of these with the Board?"  
"Farell can't touch me or my department. My position is an endowed professorship. "  
"True, he might not be able to terminate your position but the Board can certainly downgrade your department. Your endowment only specifies that you'll lead a diagnostic team not necessarily a department. Beside, every department is so understaffed; we all could use a couple more doctors."  
"Lisa will not let that happened. She'll protect my department."  
"What are you going to do when she's on maternity leave and she can't protect you?"  
House smirks "Don't worry; I'll seduce the interim Dean too. You know no one can resist my charm."

***

After his conversation with Wilson, House went back to his office and goes through the pile of candidates that he had interviewed. He picks up the phone and dials a number.  
"Hi, may I speak to Dr. Henderson?"  
"This is she. Who am I speaking to?"  
"This is Dr. Greg House from Princeton Plainsboro Hospital. I'm calling about the fellowship you've interviewed for."  
"Uh… that was about four months ago."  
"Yeah, I had to go through lots of candidates. Are you still interested?"  
"I'm very flattered, really. Unfortunately, I'm already a fellow at the Mayo Clinic."  
"Oh okay."  
"I appreciate you calling though and good luck with the search."  
"Thanks" and House hangs up the phone.

House calls two more candidates and receives the same response. The third phone call is to Dr. Eric Foreman who is on the fourth month (_of a six-month_) neurology fellowship stint at Pittsburgh Medical Center. House offers him a fellowship, knowing he will not be available for another two months. After opening a folder with two thank you notes, House makes his  
final phone call to Dr. Allison Cameron. He offers her the job because she reminds her of little Miss Manners, she'll be perfect for all the administrative crap that he hates to do. Of course, the fact that she's easy on the eye may have contributed to her selection as well.

***

_**Two weeks after  
**_  
The phone rings at the Cuddy-House residence at around eleven at night. House grabs the phone and answers "What do you need?"  
An apologetic Wilson replies "I'm sorry to call you this late, but I need a place to stay for the night."  
"What happened?"  
"It's a long story. Can I crash in your sofa?"  
"Yeah, where are you?"  
"In front of your house."  
"What if I had said no?"  
"I would have called Cuddy."  
House grunts and hangs up the phone.  
Cuddy asks "Who is it?"  
"It's Wilson. I think his wife just kicked him out of the house again."  
"Is he okay?"  
"Yeah, he's waiting outside. I'll let him in."  
Cuddy nods and walks to the bathroom for yet another pits stop.

As House opens the door, he immediately notices the gash in Wilson's forehead "What happened to you?"  
"I forgot to duck. I got hit by a flying cup."  
"Go take a seat in the kitchen, I'll get my first aid kit" House offers and limps back to their bedroom.  
"Oh my god Wilson! Are you okay?" Cuddy exclaims upon seeing Wilson's face.  
"I'm so sorry to wake you both up" a guilt-ridden Wilson apologizes to Cuddy.  
"Stop apologizing. I would have been angry if you didn't call us."  
Cuddy never asks Wilson what happened and instead brought him a glass of water.  
After House came back, she whispers "I'll get the guest room ready for him."  
House nods and attends to Wilson's wound.

"What idiotic thing did you do to piss her off this bad?"  
"I sortta confess my indiscretions."  
"Are you sortta nuts?"  
"But, they didn't mean anything to me. I love my wife."  
"You got funny ways of showing your love. Anyway, it's over and done with. Why don't you go to bed and sleep it off."  
"I'll be fine here. I'm used to your sofa."  
"Nope, I don't want Lise to accidentally see you naked in your sleep."  
"I'm not sleeping nude in your family room."  
"You better not. Lise prepared the guest room for you. It's upstairs, second door to your left."  
"Thanks. Good night, House"  
"Good night, Wilson"


	4. Chapter 4

_**Author's Note:**__ First of all, a big thank you to Ceciilee. For those who commented on how the fic continues to improve, big credit goes to my beta Ceciilee who again patiently went through drafts of this chapter._

Secondly, I want to remind everyone that this is a Huddy fic. Please hold-off all your Hameron comments to yourself 'cuz I ain't changing my story ;-)

_Finally, I do appreciate all types of feedback, it's the only way I know if you love, hate, or even reading this story :)_

***

House wakes up to the smell of pancakes and bacon coming from the kitchen. A quick look at the alarm clock informs him that it's only seven in the morning. It is too early for him to get up but the smell is just too tempting for him to stay in bed. He gets up, puts on his boxer and shirt; and limps to the bathroom. When House enters the kitchen, he sees Wilson cooking and Cuddy seating behind the kitchen counter  
"Hmm…smells good. Are you making macadamia pancakes?" House asks Wilson as he limps toward Cuddy and gives her a kiss.  
Wilson replies "yeah and I'm making some scramble eggs and turkey bacon too. It should be ready in about 5 minutes."  
As Wilson turn his back to flip the bacon, House places his arms around Cuddy's waist and rubs her belly. Of course, House being House, he also cupped a feel of Cuddy's breast.  
"How are the boys?" House asks Cuddy.  
Cuddy points at her belly "the twins are behaving, but the big one is not so happy."  
"What's wrong with Jake?"  
"Apparently, Kaitlin dumped him last night. She accused him of cheating on her."  
House smirks and replies "Are you sure Jake's mine and not Wilson's?"  
Wilson rolls his eyes and continues plating the food.

After the trio eats breakfast, Cuddy offers to clean up but Wilson insists on cleaning his own mess. Cuddy excuses herself to prepare for work, while House stays to chat with Wilson.  
"When did you start sleeping with Debbie from accounting?"  
"Huh? I never told you I'm sleeping with Debbie."  
"The only person besides me who knew that Jake is seeing another girl is you. The candy striper's dad works in accounting with Debbie. Ergo, you tell Debbie, she tells the dad, and dad tells the candy striper."  
"Oh shit! Jake got dumped because of me? I better call and apologize."  
"Oh no, you won't. Your confessions have gotten you in enough trouble. For the record, Jake isn't seeing this other girl romantically. He's tutoring her and my source tells me that she's smokin' hot. Anyway, with the candy striper out of the way—maybe he'll get a little something something extra."  
"You set me up?"  
"Yeah, I killed two birds in one stone. I got my proof that you're sleeping with Debbie and I got the candy striper to break off with Jake. Am I brilliant or what?"  
"Cuddy and Jake are going to kill you when they find out."  
"No they won't, simply because they will never find out about it. You know why?"  
"Why?"  
"You are not dumb enough to tattle Debbie to her boss, unless of course you want her to lose her job."  
Wilson shakes his head and says "You are just full of yourself. By the way, what have you got against Kaitlin?"  
House grins and replies "I have nothing against her. I just don't want Jake to get involve with anyone too seriously. He's too young, there's plenty of fish in the sea and he needs to check out what's available for him."  
"Says the middle-age guy who've only been with two women his whole life."  
"I have been with plenty of women."  
"What I meant to say is you've only been in a serious relationship with two women. Hookers don't count."  
"The only difference between you and me is I used to pay women for sex, and you're still paying women (_alimonies_) but you're not getting any sex."

***

_**Two weeks later**_

Upon seeing a pretty young lady walking in to House's office, Chase immediately drops the crosswords puzzle and opens the connecting door to the other room.  
"Hey, I'm Dr. Robert Chase. Can I help you with anything?"  
"Hi, I'm Dr. Allison Cameron."  
"Oh, you're the new fellow. House is notin yet. You're welcome to hang out with me here."  
"What time does Dr. House comes to work?"  
"House doesn't normally show up until…actually, he shows up whenever he feels like showing up."  
"Oh, and what do you do when he's not in?"  
Chase raises his crossword puzzle.  
After about five minutes of uncomfortable silence, Chase asks "do you want me to show you around the hospital?"  
"That will be great."  
"Ok. Did they give you your locker room assignment yet?"  
Cameron shows him the key.  
"Great, let me take you there first so you can store away all your stuff."

Chase shows Cameron the various hospital departments and tries to introduce her to everyone.  
On their way to the clinic, they drop by Cuddy's office. Cuddy is in a meeting with her interim replacement but waves at Chase to enter her office.  
"Hi, you must be Dr. Cameron. I'm Dr. Cuddy. It's great to have you on board."  
"Thank you. It's good to meet you Dr. Cuddy."  
Cuddy introduces her replacement as "Mike Allen, he'll be taking care of the administrative stuff when I'm on maternity leave."  
Cameron is about to ask about the babies, but Cuddy pretty much shows them the door.  
Cuddy thanks Chase for bringing Cameron over.  
Chase nods "no problem."  
"Dr. Chase, is House in yet?"  
Chase replies "ah…I have been showing Dr. Cameron around. I haven't been back in the office in a while."  
Cuddy rolls her eyes and replies "whenever he finally shows up for work, tell him to get his ass** i**n the clinic. He still owes me 8 hours from last week."  
Chase replies "Ok."

As they step out of the office, Cameron didn't think very high of Cuddy and mumbles "what a bitch!" **  
**Chase asks "did you say something?"  
"No, I was just wondering which…which way is the clinic?"

***

Wilson pops his head by House's office and greets him "hey."  
"Hey, what's up?"  
"I met your new fellow. She's cute."  
House simply nods and rolls his eyes.  
"Don't tell me you didn't think she's cute?"  
"Of course I do. Why do you think I hired her? You should hear her gush about me and my achievements." House grins and adds "If I don't know any better, I'd say she has a pin-up poster of me in her bedroom."  
Wilson spots Chase and Cameron entering the conference room, so he immediately changes the topic. "You got anything plan next week for Thanksgiving?"  
"Nope. You?"  
"Nope. Ok, see you at lunch."  
"Ok."

Chase wanted to show off to Cameron so he asked the attending at the ER to give him a case that's baffling all the other doctors. As Chase and Cameron enter the office, House asks Cameron how her first day is going. She blushes and replies "It's been good so far, thanks for asking."  
House nods and asks Chase "what do you have for me?"  
Chase hands House a case file and begins describing the patients. "A healthy twenty-five year old male goes about his daily business until he hears a car engine backfire. His co-workers sayhe just went ballistic, flailing his arms until he fell to the ground stiff like a log."  
House replies "Boring."  
Chase replies "The doctors down in ER ran EEG, MRI & PET Scan and they all rule out epilepsy."  
Cameron adds "It could be PTSD. The guy just came back from Afghanistan; the sound of the car backfiring might have triggered a combat experience."  
"Did you guys hear me? I said B-O-R-I-N-G; give me a case that I cannot solve in two minutes,"

Chase asks "You don't think its epilepsy or PTSD? What's your diagnosis?"  
House replies "Go check if he walks with an uneven gait? Also, try startling him without a noise just a quick boo. If that provokes a seizure, he has Hyperexplexia."

On their way out to do as instructed, Chase informs House of Cuddy's message.  
"Dr. Cuddy wants you in the clinic. She said you need to make up for the 4 hours you missed last week."  
"Yeah, Cuddy's such a slave driver. Always picking on a poor cripple like me" House pouted for awhile, and then wink at Cameron.  
Cameron blushes and hastily leaves.

Half an hour later, they confirm House's diagnosis and Cameron's schoolgirl crush just turn into full-fledge infatuation on House.


	5. Chapter 5

***

It's been a crazy week; House and Cuddy have barely seen each other. House's time has been consume by a puzzling case that has forced him to stay late at work. He haseven missed a couple of Lisa's doctor's appointment. House finally diagnoses his patient by the end of the week. He is on his way out the office when Cameron stops to remind him to return his mother's calls. House nods to acknowledge her, but doesn't say anything.

When House finally comes home, he is simply exhausted. All he wants to do is soak in a warm tub and sleep. Cuddy greets him with a kiss after he enters the kitchen from the garage.  
House kisses her back and asks "How are the boys?"  
Cuddy sighs and says "I haven't felt the preterm labor since last night so, that's the good news."  
Within seconds House's face turns into shock "You had preterm labor last night?"  
"For a few hours, I thought I was going to deliver."  
"Why didn't you call me?"  
"I did but your cell phone wasn't on. I tried your office too but you weren't there."  
"I forgot to charge the cell phone. And I wasn't paying attention…fuck! I'm sorry, Lise."  
"It's okay, nothing happened. If it had gone worst, I would have waked Wilson up."  
"Where's Wilson?"  
"Julie called and asked him to come back home. They want to work it out—especially with the holidays..."  
"Do you want take a warm bath with me? I missed you and twins this week."  
"Sure, I missed you too."

As they walk over to their bedroom, Cuddy says "Greg, I invited my mom and Henry over for Thanksgiving."  
"Huh, when are they arriving?"  
"They're flying-in Tuesday night. I want them and Jake to join us when I have my Wednesday appointment with Keeler. Remember, we're having the 4D ultrasound that morning?"  
House nods and replies "If that's what you want."

All this talk about family flying-in for Thanksgiving, reminds House that he needs to return his mom's phone call. He hates calling his mom because he can't lie to her; she's like a human lie detector that can smell him lying from a mile away. House thinks to himself "Mom will either ask me to join them for Thanksgiving in Ohio or meet them in Virginia to celebrate it at Aunt Jo's house. Either way, I will have to say no and I'll need to tell her why?"  
House doesn't mind introducing Lisa and the boys to his mom but he doesn't want his father near them. Unfortunately, there is no way he can tell anything to his mom without his dad knowing about it.

Cuddy notices that House is sullen so she asks him if everything is alright.  
"Yeah, I'm just tired. Come here and join me while the water is still warm."  
"Were you thinking about your patient?"  
"Nope."  
"Ok, did you find out what was wrong with her?"  
"Yeah, she has Sarcoidosis."  
"Are you worried about the babies?"  
"Of course."

"Greg, what's with the one word answers? Something is bugging you."  
"Yeah, you're right something is bugging me. I have been slacking off in the hospital and I think you should schedule me to work on Thanksgiving Day."  
Cuddy felt her blood rushing to her head. She thinks to herself "I knew it. This is just too good to be true. He can't handle me and the kids. He's planning to leave us, he's going back to his safe cocoon so he can concentrate on his patients."  
"What's going on? Are you leaving us? Did you meet someone?"  
Cuddy abruptly shifts from sitting in between House's leg to the opposite site of the tub. _This isn't an easy task to do given Cuddy's current size._  
Cuddy's response (_verbally and physically_) takes House by surprise; "Wooa…wooa…slow down. Lise, your blood pressure. It's not good for the babies. And no, I'm not going anywhere."  
Cuddy looks at House incredulously and asks**,** "then why wouldn't you want to spend our first Thanksgiving as a family together?"  
"I just want you to schedule me. It doesn't mean I'm going to actually work that day."  
Cuddy gives House a puzzled look.  
"My mom called today and I know she'll ask me to join them for Thanksgiving."  
"Then invite them over."  
"Absolutely not! That's out of the question."  
"Greg, just do what everybody else does, lie to her."  
"My mom's a human polygraph. I can't lie to her."  
"Why do you hate her so much?"  
"I don't hate her. I hate him."

While they were in bed, House asks Cuddy "Lise, why did you immediately assume that I'm leaving you and kids?"  
"I don't know. I just have this fear that one day you'll wakeup and realize that this is not what you want; and you'll pack up and leave again."  
"Leave again? Lise, you know that I…" Cuddy interrupts him before he can finish by saying "I know, you didn't know that I was pregnant with Jake when you left. All I'm saying is these are my fears and whenever I'm alone (_like these past few days_) it rears its ugly head."  
"And the meeting someone bit? Is that an ongoing fear too? You know I love you and the kids, right? I will never do that to you."  
"I know you do. But I also see how much Wilson loves his wife and yet he cheats on her."  
"I'm not Wilson. I may be a bastard and a jerk, but I've never been unfaithful to you."  
Cuddy smiles and kisses House on the lips. House kisses her back but abruptly pulls away.  
"If there's anyone who has good reasons to be jealous, it should be me. I work late for a few days and you already got a replacement for me. Iheard Wilson has been chauffeuring you to your doctor's appointment and accompanying you shopping."  
"Don't worry, Wilson is not my type. I don't like pretty boys and I don't do well with sharing my man with other woman either."

The following morning, House calls his mom. As expected, Blythe invites her son for Thanksgiving and he informs her that he's scheduled to work that day. He apologizes for not being able to join them and instead asks that shegive his love to Aunt Jo.

***

_**Day before Thanksgiving**_

Cuddy has become so big now that she no longer can drive comfortably. When Wilson was staying with them, she carpooled with him to work and ride home with House at night. Since Wilson has gone back to his wife, Cuddy has to be 'creative' in waking House up _nudge nudge, wink wink_ to drive her to work every morning. Whatever it is that she does, it normally puts a smug smirk on his face that lasts the entire day. This morning promises to be the same, until they reach the garage and Cuddy informs him "Greg, let's use the new minivan today."  
"Absolutely not! What's wrong with your car?"  
"I promised mom that she can use it today. They're picking up Jake from the airport and meeting us by the café near Keeler's for lunch."  
"Then, let's use my car."  
"No. Greg, the heater isn't working and I don't want to freeze to death."  
"Cuddles... I'm not driving that damn minivan. I have a reputation to uphold."  
"Greg, there's hardly any people this time in the morning. No one will see you."  
"We'll have to leave early for your appointment too; people will see me driving this loser car then."  
"It's theday before Thanksgiving, half of the hospital staff is on leave."  
"My staff will be there this morning."  
Already tired of arguing, Cuddy grabs the key from House's hand and heads straight to the driver's seat.  
"What the hell do you think you're doing?"  
Tears start falling in Cuddy's eyes and sobbingly reply "I'm driving the loser car myself. I'm sure you wouldn't be seen dead driving with this tanker-size loser as well."  
House limps quickly to the driver's side and says "That's not what I said. Give me the damn keys."  
When Cuddy simply glares at him and refuses to hand him the keys. He corrected himself and says "Please give me the keys." She hands him the keys and wiggle her way off the driver's seat.  
The rest of the trip is spent House driving and touching all the buttons in the car. Cuddy bought the minivan about a week ago with Wilson's help. It's a Toyota Sienna XLE Limited AWD that comes fully-loaded with remote-control dual automatic sliding doors, removable third-row seats, DVD player, back up camera and satellite navigation. Although he's impressed with the interior of the minivan becauseit looks similar to Cuddy's Lexus, House will never admit to it.

House does not have a case so he does three hours of clinic duties to get back into Cuddy's good grace. At around eleven-thirty, Cuddy calls House to inform him that she'll be ready in five minutes. He says "ok, I'll be right down." He walks over to the conference room to tell his staff that he's taking the rest of the week off and encourages them to do the same.  
Chase smiles and says "Thanks. You have a great Thanksgiving yourself."  
House nods and limps back to his office.  
Chase asks Cameron if she's flying home to the Midwest.  
"No, I'm staying local. An old college roommate who now lives in Newark invited me for dinner tomorrow. Other than that, I'll be here catching up with House's paper works. How about you?"  
"I'm catching a flight to Chicago this afternoon. I'm spending the Thanksgiving weekend with my Aunt Shirley's family."  
"Well, have a safe flight. You'll be back on Monday, right?"  
"Yeah, you have a great Thanksgiving. Don't work too hard."

After Chase leaves, Cameron opens her book bag and retrieves a greeting card. She opens the connecting door to House's office but is disappointed to see that House has left for the week.

_**TBC**_


	6. Chapter 6

_**Author's Note:**__ A very big thank you to my beta Ceciilee, who again patiently went through drafts of this chapter and allow me to bounce ideas with as well._

_I do appreciate all types of feedback, it's the only way I know if you love, hate, or even reading this story :)_

***

House, Cuddy, Emma, Henry, and Jake meetup for lunch at the café and walk over to Dr. Keeler's office afterwards. Jake, Emma and Henry are told to remain in the waiting area until Dr. Keeler is ready to do the 4D ultrasound.

When Dr. Keeler comes in the exam room, she asks Cuddy if she has experienced any pre-term labor pains since last week. Cuddy replies "no, I haven't felt any contraction however; I have noticed that the twins aren't as active this week as they were before."  
"They're probably getting crowded in there, but we'll check everything just to make sure."  
House thinks to himself "Maybe, Cuddy had pre-term labor pains because she was stressed out worrying about me leaving and being alone.**"** The babies are only active when they are arguing or talking; they weren't able to do that last week hence, the babies weren't active. House makes a mental note to make sure he comes home every night even when he's on a case. The team can call him at home if they need anything.

Dr. Keeler doesa very thorough examination of both Cuddy and the babies.  
She informs Cuddy that she has gained 7 more pounds, her blood pressure is a little high, and her cervix had shortened a bit from 4 cm to 3 cm. Dr. Keeler also reveals that the babies are growing bigger. Baby A (_Beck_) is now 4.2 lbs while Baby B (_Ham)_ is about 4.4 lbs and their heart rate is in 140s-160s. She points out that the size difference between the two is decreasing which is very good.

"In short, the babies are doing great but Mommy needs to slow down a bit," Dr. Keeler informs House and Cuddy that reaching 30 weeks of gestation is a huge milestone for MoMo twins, as they can now survive outside the womb. "As you know, Momo twins are never full-term because of the risk of cord entanglement. This means that you can deliver these babies anytime between today and six weeks from now. I strongly recommend that you finish the nursery now and complete your birth plan checklist."  
Cuddy immediately makes a mental checklist of everything they need to do in preparation of the babies' arrival. House and Wilson have assembled most of the furniture in the nursery, except for the two matching drawers/changing tables that were custom ordered. Those arrived Monday, so; House and Jake will have to assemble them this weekend. As per the birth plan, she and House have already gone through the checklist and pretty much settled on everything except one issue: circumcision. Cuddy's Jewish and she expects all her boys to be circumcised, House is not and he doesn't want his sons' penis to appear different from his. She makes a note to discuss this issue with House again.

Dr. Keeler smiles at the couple and informs them the she'll be calling in the ultrasound technician to begin the show. "I guess, dad can call-in the grandparents and the big brother now."

***

_**Thanksgiving Day  
**_  
While Emma and Cuddy are slaving away in the kitchen to prepare for Thanksgiving dinner; House, Jake and Henry assemble the drawers/changing tables for the nursery. Emma can't stop gushing about how lifelike those 4D Ultrasounds were. "I feel like that I have met them in person."  
"I know. It's too bad the twins didn't put a show yesterday. You should see them when it's their dad doing the ultrasound."  
"Have you and Greg decided on the boys' name yet?"  
"We have narrowed it down to 4 so, we're making progress. Greg has finally given up naming the boys London, Random, Crack and White."  
"With Greg's humor, I get the last three choices. But, why London?"  
Cuddy places her hand on her belly and replies "that's where they were conceived."  
Emma smiles, rubs Cuddy's belly and suggest "that's actually sweet; maybe you should put that back on the list."

In the nursery, House is 'testing' the rocking chair while Jake and Henry are assembling the furniture.  
"So Henry, were you a spy in her majesty's secret service?"  
"If I was, you'll be the last person to know."  
"Come on, we're family—I'm practically your son in law. Besides, you're retired… or are you?"  
"I'm sure you're a nice, trustworthy chap but there's not much really to say. I used to be in charge of security for the British embassies and consulate around the world. I suppose, one can infer that I work for her majesty's service."  
House asks "Have you ever killed anyone?"  
"No more than you have in your line of work."  
House smirks at Henry response and asks "Have you heard what my son did to classified materials in the American embassy at London?"  
Jake yells "Dad!"  
House dismisses his son's reaction "Oh don't worry, they know. They probably knew it before the Americans did. Am I right, Henry?"  
Henry simply smiles and declares "I think we're just about done here. Any of you lads care for a glass of sherry?"

***

_**Day after Thanksgiving  
**_  
Jake drives his mom to work and decides to help her pack up a few things to make room for her replacement.  
"Is Mike taking over as Dean of Medicine?"  
"No, Mike will only be taking over the administrative parts of the job—procurements, billings, maintenance of the facilities, fundraising, etc. The Board has appointed a three person rotation to handle the medical aspect of my Job."  
"You mean approving risky medical procedures and test?"  
"Yes, those test and procedures that your dad is very fond of requesting. Those types of request will be handled by Carson for Cardiology, Nepar from Pediatrics, and of course, Wilson."  
"Hmm...Wilson will always side with Dad. If Dad chooses to turn on his charm, Nepar will probably side with him too. I'm not so sure about Carson. I coordinated a couple of consults for him and dad. He's very straightforward and he never let Dad get away with his bullshits."  
"Jake, let's not talk about my work. I want to hear how are you handling med school and are you meeting new people? Maybe meet some nice girls?"  
"Mom, I talk to you every weekend. You know how school's going."  
"School maybe, everything else I'm not so sure. Your dad mentioned that you're tutoring a, 'smokin' hot Swedish babe'."  
Jake gives his mom a surprise look and replies "how did he know about that? Her name is Marie and she's a Swiss not a Swedish. She lives next door from my apartment. Her English is not very good, so I help her out a bit."  
"Do you like her?"  
"She's very beautiful, smart, funny and very adventurous. But it's too soon. Kaitlin and I you know… I don't want to jump in to another relationship. It wouldn't be fair to Marie."  
"I think that's awfully wise and mature of you. I'm very proud of you, Jake."  
Jake nods at his mom and asks "Mind if I head down to the cafeteria and get something to eat? Do you want anything?"  
Cuddy shakes her head and replies "No, thank you. I still havea yogurt and abanana in the mini-fridge. Take your time. By the way, drop by the pediatric ward. All the nurses there ask about you all the time."

***

After seeing House walks-in the office and drop his backpack, Cameron immediately gets up to greet him.  
"Hi, I thought you were off today. Did you have a good Thanksgiving?"  
House simply grunt at his perky fellow.  
"Would you like some coffee?"  
House nods and looks at his desk. Cameron did not only re-arrange his desk but also left a Thanksgiving card. He opens the card, reads it, and discards it in the thrash can along with all the unopened mail that Cameron has neatly stack on his desk.  
House grabs the cup of coffee from Cameron and says "I'm heading down to the clinic. If you need me… well, pretend that you never saw me."

Shortly after, the door in Cuddy's office swings open to reveal a scowling House walking in.  
Cuddy asks "What are you doing here? I thought you were taking a day off."  
"I was, but someone forgot to tell Emma that peace and quiet are required for anyone to sleep."  
"What did Mom do?"  
"The question should be what was she not doing? She's cooking up a storm in the kitchen, vacuuming the whole house. She even enters our bedroom while I'm sleeping naked in our bed."  
Cuddy is desperately trying to control herself from laughing at the thought of her Mom seeing Greg naked. Curiosity gets the better of her so she inquires "were you having a nice dream of me again, when she walked-in?"  
A smug smirk appears in House face and replies "I don't remember. But if her reaction is of any indication, I say Emma hasn't seen an anaconda that big."

***

"You want me to what? Are you out of your mind?" Wilson exclaims at Cameron.  
Cameron replies "I'm sorry, I panicked and besides Mrs. House said she hasn't seen her Gregory in five years."  
"So, they're now in the cafeteria waiting for House?"  
"Yeah, they're driving back home from Virginia and they wanted to stop by and see their son.  
I just need you to bring him to the cafeteria so they can a nice lunch together."  
"Why don't you bring him there yourself?"  
Cameron blushes and replies "Don't be silly. He's my boss, I can't ask him to have lunch with me. He'll think I like him."

***

As House and Wilson walks in the cafeteria, House immediately spots his parents seating on a table in the corner.  
House declares "You know what, I just realize that I'm not hungry." He is about to walk out when he hears his mom yells "Gregory, Gregory, we're right here, son."  
House looks at Wilson and says "I can't believe you did this to me. Way to go Benedict Arnold."  
He turns around and smile at his Mom "hey Mom, I didn't even know you were here."

Jake who is a few tables away, hears the exchange between Blythe and House. He shakes his head and thinks to himself "I'm sure I misheard it. Dad said his parents are both dead."

_**TBC  
**_


	7. Chapter 7

_**Author's Note:**__ A very big thank you to my beta Ceciilee. She not only patiently went through drafts of this chapter but gave awesome suggestions to improve the story._

_**WARNING:**__ I want to remind everyone that this is a Huddy fic. The next few chapters are __**NOT **__Cameron-friendly. If you are a Hameron fan and are easily offended, please click the back button on your browser and pick a different story._

***

Jake shifts his seat so his back is facing them (_House, John and Blythe_) and he can eavesdrop better.

Blythe apologizes to House "We should have called ahead of time. We know how busy you are, we just thought we'd surprise you."  
"No problem, it's great to see you."  
"Oh Greg, don't lie."  
House uncomfortably looks at his father  
"We came at a bad time, didn't we?"  
"I'm dealing with kind of a complicated issue right now, so..."  
"You don't want to see us?"  
"Mom, don't make me feel guilty."  
"No**,** no, of course not! Sorry. Can I at least buy you a Ruben?"  
"I guess I've got time for a sandwich."

Jake thinks to himself "I'm sure Dad has a reason why he lied about his parents being dead."  
He stands up and walks over to his Dad and his grandparent's table.  
House looks up to Jake and asks "yeah?"  
Jake replies "I just wanted to let you know that I'm finished helping Mom and if there's anything you want me to do."  
House dismisses his son by saying "Nope. You can go home now, if you want."  
Jake waits for his Dad to introduce him to his grandparents but nothing. After standing for a minute that felt like a lifetime, a heartbroken Jake introduces himself to his grandparents.  
"Hi, I'm Jake. I used to intern for Dr. House."  
John replies in a patronizing tone "Of course, Greg's told us all about you."  
An excited Jake says "Really?"  
John asks House "New, huh?"  
House replies "Nope; just gullible."  
Blythe glares at John and Greg, and immediately apologizes to Jake. She sees the look of hurt in the boy's face and asks if he would care to join them for lunch.

Jake looks at Blythe and thanks her for the invitation. He quickly says goodbye and almost runs into Cameron on the way out of the cafeteria.  
Blythe asks House "that boy Jake, he looks very familiar. Have we met him before? Do we know his parents?"  
House replies "Yes, he's Cuddy's boy."  
John asks "Your boss?"  
House nods.  
Blythe replies "We bump into her on our way in. She looks like she's about to give birth anytime now. I don't know how these younger women do it—juggling work, husband and kids."  
John adds "That's why a lot of their kids are drug addicts and screw ups. Their mothers are never home.  
House instinctively defends Lisa and his son "Jake is not a screw up. He's sixteen and in med school. Lise did a great job with him and she'll do a fabulous job with the twins."  
Both John and Blythe are taken aback by House's defense of his boss.**  
**Blythe immediately tries to smooth things over by changing the topic.  
"Oh you wouldn't believe what your Uncle Frank did to the turkey..."

Cameron is very curious to meet House's parents and see how they are like, so she pretends to have a new case for House.  
"I'm sorry to interrupt your lunch but I just need a quick consult from Dr. House."  
House looks at Cameron and extends his hand for the case file. She hands a folder to him and he reads it.  
While House is reading, Cameron introduces herself to his parents.  
"Hi, I'm Allison Cameron. I work for your son and I spoke to you on the phone."  
Blythe replies "Yes, thank you for giving us the idea of catching Greg here at work."  
House's ears perk up and his nostrils flare after learning that Cameron has organize this little 'surprise visit' from his parents.  
"Dr. Cameron, thank you for bringing this patient to my attention. He is probably going to die of poisoning if we don't treat it immediately."  
Cameron has a puzzled look in her face because she knows that she handed him the case of a boy suffering from diarrhea.  
"Huh, what?"  
"I'm sorry, Mom and Dad. It was really good seeing you both." House points at the folder and shrug "I need to save this patient."  
Blythe immediately replies "Of course son, we understand. It's great to see you, Greg."  
House gives his mom a hug and kiss. He turns to his father, tips his head and says "Colonel."

***

"Greg, do you know what's wrong with Jake?"  
"No, why?"  
"He's been awfully quite. He hasn't said a word ever since hegot back from lunch. I know it's not about a girl because he actually talked to me about Marie this morning."  
"Don't worry about it, Lise. He'll get over it."  
"Greg?"  
"Lise?"  
"You are not going to tell me why your parents were in the hospital today?"  
"Wasn't planning to."  
"Did Jake meet them?"  
"Yes."  
"Did you introduce him as your son?"  
"No."  
Cuddy sits-up from bed to get a better view of House's eyes "what did you introduce him as?"  
"He introduced himself as Jake, my former intern."  
"My god! How could someone as smart as you, be so stupid? Your son adores you; he worships the ground you walk on. For his own father to disown him, it must have been devastating for him."  
Cuddy stands up from the bed and is now pacing back and forth.  
"Lise, sit down. I did not disown him. I just don't want my father to know that he's my son. You are fine with me not introducing you as my girlfriend to my parents."  
"Of course, it's every girl's dream to get knock-up by a boyfriend who's too chicken to tell his parents what he's done. It's fine if you want to treat me as your dirty little secret, but I will draw the line on how you treat our children."  
"What do you want me to do?"  
"I don't know. I don't think I want to be with you right now. Maybe, you should sleep in the couch tonight."  
"Lise…"  
Cuddy hands House a pillow and a blanket, and turn her back because she can't even stand the sight of him.

Wilson groggily picks up the phone and says "Hello"  
"Hello, Wwwil…ssson…"  
"House, its one o'clock in the morning. Are you drunk? Where are you?"  
"I'm at… where am I?"  
The bartender takes the phone and says "He's at Conte's Bar down by Witherspoon, bring some cash; he owes $100."  
Wilson arrives at Conte's at around 1:15AM; he pays for House's tab and orders two cups of coffee. The bartender reminds him that the last call is at two. Wilson nods and walks over to House with the coffee.  
"What happened?"  
"I screw up. Lisa hates me. My son hates me. Do you hate me too, Wilson?"  
"No, I do not hate you, House. Lisa loves you and Jake adores you. Maybe she's a little piss at you right now, but she doesn't hate you."  
"How do you know that? She said she doesn't want to be with me anymore. They're all I have, Wilson. I'm tired of being alone. I don't want to be miserable. I just want to be with Lisa and the kids."  
"Sober up and I'll take you home."  
"Do you think she'll take me back?"  
"Of course she will. I spoke to Lisa. She's worried about you."  
"You spoke to Lisa? When?"  
"I called her after you called me. I told her that I was on my way to pick you up."  
"She doesn't hate me anymore?"  
"House, finish your coffee. Go home, tell Lisa you're sorry and promise her you'll try harder next time."  
"Is that what you tell your wives after they kicked you out?"  
"Yes," Wilson answers  
"I don't think that'll work with Lisa, she's too smart. She's just too good for me."  
"I know," Wilson agrees.

_**TBC**_

_**Author's Note #2:**__ If you love (or hate) this story, please click the "Review this story/chapter" button at the bottom of this page and let me know what you think._


	8. Chapter 8

***

Cuddy thanks Wilson for hauling a passed-out House from the car and into the family room.  
After Wilson leaves, she places a trash bin besides the couch.  
House reaches for Cuddy's arms and says "I'm sorry, Lise. Please don't leave me."  
"Go to sleep, Greg."  
"I love you, Lise. Please don't leave and take the kids away from me."  
"Go to sleep, we'll discuss this tomorrow when you're sober."

***

House wakes up with a pounding headache; he looks around and is comforted by the fact that he's still at home.  
He thinks to himself "she didn't kick me out, yet."  
He gingerly gets up; sleeping on the couch is never good for his leg, so he reachesout for a couple of vicodins.  
He limps to their bedroom and his heart starts pounding after seeing that Cuddy is not in bed.  
He relaxes a bit after hearing the water running in the shower.  
He walks over to the bathroom and stands by the doorway.  
Cuddy spots him and** tells him** to shut the door, "you're letting the cold air in."  
He does as ordered and hands her the towel.  
"Thanks. How's your hangover?"  
"I'll survive. Lise, I'm sorry for what happened yesterday. You're not my dirty little secret; you and kids are all I have. I don't know what I would do without you and the kids. I didn't want to introduce you all to my father because I don't want to give him the opportunity to hurt you."  
"Greg, what did he do to make you hate him so much?"  
"He never once told me he loves me or he's proud of me. I'm nothing but a failure to him because I did notfollow the House family tradition of serving in the military. He was a bastard to me, Lise; a kid should never have to experience what I went through."  
"I'm sorry. I didn't know."  
"The great Colonel House treated me like I was one of his soldiers. To toughen me up**; **he'd forced me to sleep in the yard in the middle of winter or to take a bath filled with ice."  
"Oh my god! You should talk to someone about this."  
"It is what it is, Lise. Talking about it will not change the past. I just don't want him to be part of our lives or our kids' future."  
"You know, that I will never let anyone hurt our children. Not even you."  
"I know. What can I do to prove to you how much you mean to me?"  
"Greg, all I want you to do right now is tell your son how much he means to you. There's plenty of time to discuss what you can do for me."  
"Ok."  
"Greg, when did you know your parents were coming to town?"  
"When I walked in the cafeteria and saw them sitting there. Cameron apparently organized the little drop in from my parents. She convinced Wilson to bring me to the cafeteria."  
"Did you tell that nosy little do-gooder to mind her own business next time?"  
House nods his head and says "I did. I don't know if it'll work."  
"She works for you, deal with it. You need to make it clear to her that her job is to save patients, not to save you. And Greg?"  
"Yeah?"  
"Stop leading the poor girl on. She'll be crushed when she finds out about us."  
House simply grins at Cuddy's remarks.

***

House walks in the kitchen when Jake is eating his breakfast and says "hey."  
Jake nods at his father and is about to stand up when House says "Don't leave. I need to talk to you."  
House looks at his son and says "You know I love you, right?"  
Jake simply shrugs his shoulder.  
"I think I owe you an explanation."  
Jake nods at his dad which signals him to continue.  
"I didn't introduce you to my parents because I don't want them to know about you, your mom or the twins."  
"Why? Are you embarrassed about us?"  
"Dear god no. I'm very proud of you and your mom. There's not a day that goes by where I don't pinch myself that someone likes your mom would want to be with someone like me. And you... you are every parent's dream; you're smart, kind, funny and responsible." House pauses for a while and continues "my father and I don't get along very well. Actually, we don't get along at all. We haven't since I was thirteen. I hate him and he hates me. And I don't want him in our lives. I don't even want him near you, your mom or the twins."  
"Why did you lie to me about them being dead?"  
"Because, I thought I was to protecting you. It's just easier to say they're dead, than to explain why I hate your grandfather's guts."  
"Next time, stop protecting me. I can handle the truth. I went through the first fifteen years of my life, thinking my father hated me that's why he's didn't want to be part of my life. I never ask mom about you because I was afraid to hear that confirmation. Guess what? I was wrong and I wish I had the guts to insist on the truth early on, we could have been a family a long time ago."  
"I understand. You'll have to excuse your old man, I'm a bit rusty with this whole fatherhood thing."  
"What about my grandmother? She seems very nice."  
"She is. But if I let her know about you and your mom, she'll tell him. She's from a generation where the wives always stand by their husbands. I just don't want to take that chance."  
"She never protected you from him?"  
"No. Not because she doesn't love me but it's just the way things were."  
"Mom will never do that. She'll never let you get away with anything that she thinks might hurt me or the twins."  
"I know. She'll always protect you and the twins…even from me."  
"Dad? I know you believe that everybody lies, but please don't lie to me again."  
"I'm sorry, I'll try harder next time."  
"Dad? Did that line work on mom?"  
"No—she's too smart, why?"  
"I figured, it didn't work with Kaitlin either."

Father and son both laugh, "And Dad? Tell your jock snitch to back off."  
"How did you know?"  
"Only an idiot like Jason wouldn't be able to tell the difference between a Swiss from a Swede."

***

_**A week later **_

Wilson walks-in to House's office and sees him playing with his thinking ball.  
"How are you doing?"  
House shrugs his shoulder and replies "aside from this throbbing pain in my leg, everything is all peachy."  
"I mean the home front. Did she forgive you?"  
"Forgive, maybe. Forget, I don't think so."  
"Well, she hasn't kicked you out on the street. That's a good thing."  
"Yeah, she hasn't let me back in our bed either."  
"Did she say why?"  
" She said, she tosses and turn all night, and its better that at least one of us gets some sleep."  
"Maybe, she's telling the truth. She's still talks to you, right?"  
"Yeah."  
"What did you have to do to make her forgive you? Buy her jewelry? Promise her trip to Paris?"

"Lise is not like any of your wives! She just told me to settle it with spawn #1."  
"Did you? How did that go?"  
"Fine, Jake's a great kid and he understands that he has a screw-up for a father."  
"That's good. Do you and Lisa still do things together?"  
"Yeah, everything except the sleeping and the sex thing."  
"Oh…I just assume you haven't done the sex thing in a while. I mean with her condition and all."  
House smirks and says "you wouldn't believe how flexible Lise can be. You should get Julie to take some yoga classes."  
"I'm glad to hear that you two are cool."  
"Lise and I are cool. You and me, I'm not so sure."  
"I hauled your drunken sorry ass at one in the morning. You should be thankful."  
"I wouldn't be in that situation if you hadn't turned me over to the British, you Benedict Arnold you."  
"I'm sorry about that. I should have known better than to go along with Cameron's stupid scheme. Does Cuddy know about it?"  
"That Cameron orchestrated the whole thing? Oh yeah, and she's pretty pissed. Called Cameron a 'nosy little do-gooder'."  
"Oh, girls fight!"  
"I know. You think it'll be asking too much if I suggest adding mud or jello in the mix."

_TBC_


	9. Chapter 9

***

Cuddy is now on the 33rd week of her pregnancy, she's just about had it with the back pains, the bathroom trips, and the sleepless nights. She knows that the longer she carries the babies in her womb, the lesser the risk of complications resulting from premature birth; it however doesn't stop her from being cranky. Wilson jokes that House's crankiness is rubbing off on her.

During her last checkup, Dr. Keeler threatened to put her on bed rest if she doesn't slow down. So, Cuddy decides to cut back on her work hours to three days a week and concentrate on hers and the babies' health.

Shortly after Cuddy and House moved-in to their new home, Cuddy convinced her longtime cleaning lady to be their full-time housekeeper. For the last three years, Lina drops-in once a week to clean Cuddy's previous home. Cuddy likes her because she's hardworking, organize, and trustworthy. As the full-time housekeeper of the Cuddy-House residence, Lina takes care of all the household chores like cleaning and doing the laundry. Although, Cuddy never asks her to cook, she always prepares supper for House and Cuddy before she leaves for the day. And ever since, Cuddy cutbacks on her work hours, Lina also starts driving Cuddy to her doctor's appointments (_so House doesn't have to leave work and drive Cuddy to her appointment_). Cuddy is very grateful for her help and values her company.

With Lina's help, Cuddy goes all out in decorating the house in celebration of their first Chrismukkah as a family. The duo decks the house with various ribbons, wreaths, and lights. They decorate all the houseplants by covering their pots with shiny gift wrapping papers and hang miniature ornaments on them. The living room has a Christmas theme; both the couch and the loveseat are covered with red slipcovers and punctuated by green pillows. An eight foot Christmas tree shares the center stage with House's prized piano. Meanwhile, the formal dining room has a Hanukkah theme; both the dining table and the buffet table are covered with blue and white tablecloths. At the center of the dining table is a Menorah lamp and the buffet table is adorn with a Star of David centerpiece.

With the exception of an undecorated Christmas tree, the family room remains untouched. Lina asks Cuddy if she wants her to decorate the family room as well. Cuddy's says "no" and explain that she wants to leave the family room decoration to Jake. Ever since Jake was a toddler, Cuddy insisted that they celebrate Chrismukkah in honor of her son's Jewish and Christian heritage. "Jake loves to decorate the Christmas tree with special ornaments he has collected throughout the years." She points to the two large boxes neatly tuck in the corner "Most of them are from his Nana and she bought them from all over the world." When Lina points to the fireplace, Cuddy replies "It's also his job to hang up everyone's stockings by the mantle."  
"Dr. Cuddy, when is Jake coming home?"  
"He'll be home for winter break next week. How about you? Do you have plans for the holidays?"  
"No, I'm saving enough money so I can go back home to the Philippines next year."  
"You're taking your whole family home?"  
"No, my whole family is back in the Philippines. I have not seen them in two years."  
"Two years? It must be very tough to be away from your family, do you have kids?"  
"Yes, I have four kids. It's very hard. The first year I came here, I was crying every night. Now, I just work hard and buy lots of phone cards so I can talk to my kids."  
Cuddy felt guilty and embarrass for not knowing anything about Lina's life despite employing her for the last three years.  
"Why don't your family come here and stay with you?"  
"No visa."  
"Is there anything Greg and I can do?"  
Lina smiles and raises two fingers "two more years and I can apply for green card."  
"That's great news. But two years is a very long time."  
Lina nods and says "There's no jobs back home. I earn more as a cleaning lady here than as a teacher back home."  
"You were a teacher"  
"Yes."  
"How did you become a cleaning lady?"  
"I had a neighbor back home who's also a teacher like me; she got a job as a nanny. She recommended me to a friend of her boss. They needed someone to take care of their three children. They like me and they sponsored my G-5 visa."  
"When was that?"  
"Seven years ago. The kids are all big now; they don't need a nanny anymore. But to stay in the states legally, I still work for them on weekends. During the week, I clean houses like yours, Dr. Johnson and Dr. Michaels."  
"While you take care of other people's kids, who takes care of your kids? How old are they?"  
"My mom and my husband take care of my kids. My eldest, Elsa is 18 and she's in nursing school. Miguel is 15 and Enzo is 13, both are in high school. The youngest one, Theresa is 8 years old. I left the Philippines when she was still a baby." To prevent herself from crying, Lina immediately changes the topic and points at Cuddy's belly and asks "When are the babies coming?"  
Cuddy rubs her belly and replies "Three weeks from now, if not earlier."  
"Could be Christmas babies, yes?"  
"Could be" Cuddy smiles at the irony of a Jewish mom and an atheist dad, giving birth to twin boys on Christmas day.

***

Ever since Cuddy brought up the fact that she felt like House's dirty little secret, House has made a conscientious effort to be mindful of Cuddy's feelings. He also may have unintentionally dropped hints about their relationship to an observant fellow on his staff.

First, there's the matter about the white Lexus car. Everyone knows that it belongs to Dr. Cuddy, and yet House is seen driving it every day and parking it in his space. Did House buy Cuddy's car?

Second, there's the change in House's work schedule. Cuddy and House have been arriving and leaving work at the same time. Is that just coincidence?

Third, the case of a lunch date. House and Cuddy are often seen eating lunch together. Okay, maybe Wilson tags along as well but the point is that's a lot lunches with your boss. Don't you think?

Anyway, the fourth and final hint is the matter of a growing collection of babies' pictures. The often unused Lupus book hidden beneath a stack of journals located on the table behind House desk holds a little secret. It seems the good Dr. House has a growing collection of sonogram pictures of twin fetuses tuck between the pages of the book. Ah, let's not forget that the name of Lisa Cuddy appears on the top left corner of each of those sonogram pictures.

These are little hints that will normally go unnoticed by anyone, but not to the trained eyes of young Dr. Chase. He doesn't think it's anybody's business who his boss sleeps with, but he also doesn't think that a good money-making opportunity such as starting a betting pools should go to waste. Dr. Chase starts three betting pools: 1- the sex of the Cuddy babies (_he already knows the answer to this question_). 2- the weight of the Cuddy babies' (_he needs good inside information on this_) and 3- the actual birth date of the Cuddy babies' (_the babies are MoMo twins, almost certain they'll be delivered through c-section, again he needs good inside information on this_). He would love to start a babies' daddy pool, but a lot of the old-timers already have a very good idea of who it might be.

Cameron disapproves of Chase's betting pools, but she becomes really indignant when Chase mentions that House is the father of Cuddy's twins.  
"That's ridiculous. They can't even stand the sight of each other."  
"The two are just too nasty to each other not to have done the…nasty."  
"If he is the father of her babies, she probably deceived her. Just like in the movie 'Disclosure'."  
Chase laughs at Cameron's ridiculous theory and replies "Have you met House? Does he look like someone who can easily be harassed by anyone?"  
"The mere thought of it is repulsive. How will women in power be taken seriously if they abuse their positions for sex?"  
"Have you seen those award pictures down in the lobby? Those pre-pregnancy Cuddy pictures are hot. She can abuse me anytime" Chase grins.  
Cameron replies "that's just the most disgusting thing I've ever heard" and walks away.

***

_**The following day**_

Cuddy is in a cranky mood today. Early in the morning, she yells at House for leaving the toilet seat up. Then, she yells at him again for forgetting to take the trash out last night. House is now used to her foul mood, but has been very good at keeping his mouth shut. He thinks to himself "I love sleeping in our bed and I'm not saying anything that will be jeopardizing that again."

House and Cuddy walks-in to the hospital lobby together, the same way they have been doing for the past few weeks. Cuddy turns right to her office and House goes straight to the elevator but not without giving each a quick look and nod.

After her conversation with Chase, Cameron is very curious to prove him wrong. So far she has seen House and Cuddy arriving to work together and exchanging a look. She thinks to herself "could it be? Was Chase right?" Well, there's only one way to find out, she decides to ask the source herself.

Cameron knocks at the door in Cuddy's office and asks "do you have a minute?"  
Cuddy replies "Sure, what can I do for you Dr. Cameron?"  
Cameron stammers a bit but finally asks "Is it true that House is the father of your babies?"  
_****_

TBC


	10. Chapter 10

***

Cameron knocks at the door in Cuddy's office and asks "do you have a minute?"  
Cuddy replies "Sure, what can I do for you Dr. Cameron."  
Cameron stammers a bit but finally asks "Is it true that House is the father of your babies?"  
Cuddy is momentarily shocked at Cameron's upfrontnessbut quickly recovers and answers "I'm sorry, did I miss something? When did my private life become any of your business?"  
"If House is the father of your babies, I need to know?"  
"How does the paternity of my children affect your job, Dr. Cameron?"  
"I need to know if I want to work in an environment where my superiors will disrespect theirstaff?"  
"Are you implying that I somehow used my position to coerce Dr. House into doing something that he's not willing to do?"  
"Well, the fact that he hides from you and is alwaysdoing things to undermine your authority proves that he obviously doesn't like you. Meaning, the only way he's the father of your babies is if you tricked him."  
"Of course. And your two months stint here in this hospital makes you an expert on Gregory House?"  
"It doesn't take long to know that House is a complicated genius. His abrasiveness and rudeness are façades he built to wall people out. He was probably hurt by someone he loved and trusted. He needs someone who will nurture him back from his fragile state so he can trust people again. "  
"And you think that you would be the one? You're the one who'll fix him?"  
"Maybe not, but it's definitely not you."  
Cuddy shakes her head upon the realization that Cameron really has it bad for House.  
"Dr. Cameron, you are young, pretty and smart. You have a bright future ahead of you; don't do anything rash as a result of your schoolgirl crush on your boss."  
Cameron quickly replies "It's not just a schoolgirl crush. He likes me."  
"Are you that naïve? Just because House gives you a wink and a smile doesn't mean that he likes you in a romantic way. He is no different than any other man who he enjoys being surrounded by pretty girls. There's nothing more ego-boosting to a middle-age man than a pretty young girl pinning for him."  
"You think that the only reason he hasan interestin me is because I'm pretty?"**  
**Cuddy calmly asks "Do you actually think he has 'an interest' in you? Do you seriously think that he has feelings for you?"  
Cameron answers "I know he does. He's just afraid to deal with his feelings right now. He needs someone who'll understand and support him."  
"As you said, Dr. House is a complicated genius but he does not need fixing, he is who he is."  
Cameron accuses Cuddy "you're just jealous because he treats me better than you."

Cuddy's patience is definitely being tested this morning so she simply shrugs her shoulder and asks Cameron "you obviously have your mind made up, what do you need me here for?"  
Cameron demands "I need the answer. Is House the father of your babies?"  
Cuddy thinks to herself "this is a losing cause; she obviously will not believe anything I say."  
Cuddy sighs and replies "I think it's best that you ask Dr. House that question. You obviously would believe his words more than mine"  
Cameron groans in frustration and leaves slamming the door behind her.

***

House is playing with his Game boy when a seething Cameron walks into his office.  
With a scowl on her face and hands on her hips, she stands over House's desk.  
"What's got your panties in a bunch?"  
"Are you the father of Dr. Cuddy's babies?"  
"I don't know, am I? Did Chase start a Cuddy babies' daddy pool? If he did, I'm not telling."  
"This is not a joke."  
"Who said I was telling a joke?"  
"I'm serious. Are you or are you not the father of Dr. Cuddy's babies?"  
"Why don't you ask her? She's the one carrying the babies."  
"I did. She told me to ask you."  
"Did you really ask a hormonal pregnant woman that question?"  
"Yes."  
"I'm impressed."  
"Impressed that I have the guts to ask her?" Thinking that House is admiring her courage, Cameron smiles a little at the thought of impressing him.  
"No, that you came out alive. Cuddy has more self control than I thought."**  
**Cameron stands waiting for a response, until finally she asks "are you going to answer my question?"  
House pretends to be surprised "Oh my god, I didn't even notice that you were stillstanding there."  
Cameron glares at him and House continues to ignore her.  
After a few minutes, House asks "You're really not going to leave me alone until I answer your question, huh?"  
Cameron nods.  
House puts down his Game Boy and addresses Cameron "Ok, what you want to know?"  
"Are you the father of Dr. Cuddy's babies?"  
"Yes."  
"Was it consensual?"  
"You're asking about the sex thing, right? Not the baby thing. Cause if you're asking about the baby thing, I don't think Lise and I ever asked them if they wanted to be born to us."

A look of shock appears on Cameron's face. All she can musterto say "you and Cuddy are..."  
House grins and says "yeah, I'm doing the nasty with the She-devil. We got demon spawns to prove it. Spawn number one is 16 and a genius like me. In a week or two; we'll add spawns number two and number three to our Hell **House**—it's our diabolical plan for total world domination."

House's confirmation that he's the father of Cuddy's babies is enough to bring Cameron to the brink of tears. It's not only shock; it is great disappointment. She really thought that House had feelings for her. She feels embarrassed about confronting Cuddy and ashamed of accusing Cuddy for taking advantage of House.


	11. Chapter 11

***

_**Wednesday**_

Cuddy is busy reviewing paperwork when she hears a knock on her office door. She looks up and sees Cameron on the door.  
"Hi, Dr. Cuddy**, **do you have a moment?"  
Cuddy thinks to herself "Oh no, not again. I thought Greg said he already straighten her up."  
Cuddy reacts "Of course, what can I do for you Dr. Cameron?"  
Cameron nervously replies "I…I just want to personally apologize for my behavior yesterday. What I did was completely uncalled for and unbecoming of a professional doctor. I will totally understand if you (_or House_) fire me for what I did."  
Cuddy smiles and states "If I fire every employee that accuses me of something awful, there won't be enough left to run this hospital."  
Cameron breathes a big sigh of relief.  
Cuddy continues "It's true that what you did was immature and inappropriate for a young professional as yourself, but who amongst us haven't done stupid things just because we thought we were protecting someone we like."  
Cameron says "thank you" at Cuddy's effort to make her feel better.  
Cuddy further reassures the young doctor "Dr. Cameron, you are a good doctor. You're smart, compassionate and you care about your patients. You are good for House." Cuddy quickly clarifies herself by adding "I mean; you're an asset to House's team."  
Cameron laughs nervously at Cuddy's correction and replies "Thanks for your understanding, Dr. Cuddy."  
"No problem," Cuddy replies with a smile.  
As Cameron is about to leave, she hears Cuddy says"Just make sure you keep your hands off House when I'm on maternity leave."  
Cameron quickly turns around with a baffled look.  
Cuddy smiles and add "I was just kidding, Dr. Cameron."  
"Of course. But are you really going on maternity leave already?"  
"Yes, today's my last day at work. I'm packing it in" she points at her belly and adds "just waiting for these two to pop out of me."  
"Good luck, Dr. Cuddy."  
"Thank you, Dr. Cameron."  
"And Dr. Cuddy, you don't have to worry about me bothering Dr. House."  
Cuddy smirks and replies "I know."

***

_**Friday**_

Cuddy is glad that she didn't have to go to work because she's been feeling lethargic and can barely walk to the bathroom. It seems being on-leave doesn't stop her employees from sending her e-mails. She's been getting steady streams of e-mails from Mike, her replacement (_inquiring about Hospital matters_), Doctors and nurses (_complaining about her replacement_) and donors (_demanding more time from her replacement_). It gets to be too overwhelming, that she decides to shut off her laptop. She thinks to herself "I need to prepare for my appointment with Dr. Keeler anyway."

As she was putting on her make-up, she smells something scrumptious coming from the kitchen. She walks over to the kitchen and sees Lina cooking up a storm.  
"Lina, that smells so good. What are you cooking?"  
"I'm making some Filipino dishes for Jake. He's coming home tonight, right?"  
"Yes, he is. Can I have some of these?" Cuddy reaches to grab some mini-eggrolls (lumpia).  
Lina smiles and says "Of course."  
"Oh, they are so delicious.Didn't you make a plate of these last Christmas?"  
"Yes, Jake remembers it too. He sent me a Christmas card with a note requesting I make some when he comes home."  
Cuddy can't hide the smile on her face. She feels so blessed to have a housekeeper like Lina who takes good care of her family and a son like Jake, who's thoughtful enough to send a Christmas card to Lina.

House walks in and heads straight to the plate of eggrolls on the kitchen counter.  
A surprised Cuddy asks "why are you here? Did you smell Lina's cooking all the way from the hospital?"  
He simply rolls his eyes and starts grabbing a handful of eggrolls."  
Cuddy slaps his hands and says "hey, Lina made them for Jake."  
Lina interrupts "Don't worry, Dr. Cuddy. I'll make more for Dr. House."  
House sticks his tongue out and says "See, why can't you love me more like Lina does?"  
Cuddy replies "because Lina doesn't have to put up with you every hour of every day. So, are you going to answer why you're home this early?"  
House continues to munch on eggrolls and replies in a matter of fact tone "I'm driving you to your appointment with Keeler."  
Cuddy gives House a puzzled look and says "but, Lina has been driving me to my appointments."  
"You're about to pop out. I need to know when doomsday is and if the demon spawns are doing fine and stuff."  
Cuddy looks at House suspiciously and over at Lina, who's cooking merrily. She immediately retorts "you mean you need to know the sizes of the babies and when my scheduled c-section is so you can join the betting pool."  
With a mock-shock expression on his face, he replies "Of course not! That will be totally unfair to the other betters. They'll cry foul and demand full refunds if they know I'm in the pool."

***

_**Saturday Night**_

House and Cuddy are sitting in the family room waiting for their son to come home. House is actually watching TV, when ahormonal Cuddy demandsHouse's full attention in finalizing the only sticky point in their birth plan checklist.  
"Greg, we need to make a decision now. I could give birth tonight."  
"Lise, you already know my point of view on that."  
"I can't convince you to change your mind?"  
"Hmmm, let me think. Are we open for negotiation? or is this one of your hormonal ploy where if I say no, you get mad at me and kick me out of our bed again."  
"I can be convinced."  
House smiles because his original plan is working. He doesn't really object to his sons being circumcised. Medically speaking, there are numerous health benefits to circumcision such as the fact that it's cleaner; it helps prevent urinary tract infections; and the percentage of HIV and STDs are lower in circumcised males. House being House, didn't immediately agreed to it because it is in his nature to be a contrarian. He and Cuddy have pretty much agreed on everything with regards to the twins, so he just need something to argue/bicker about.  
"Sweet. How about: if I say yes to circumcision, then I get 5 'get out of jail' passes."  
"What privileges does this 'get out of jail' pass entail?"  
"You forgive me and give me a pass if I screw up."  
"Good god. Do you plan on screwing up a lot?"  
"Nope, not intentionally. I just want a little wiggle room. Do we have a deal?"  
"No deal. If you say yes to circumcision, you'll get 1 'get out of jail' pass and you can only use it with family related screw ups (no work issues)."  
"How about if I get 4 'get out of jail' passes, two for home and two for work?  
"No. My final offer is 2 'get out of jail' passes and it only covers home issues.  
"Snip away! You got yourself a deal."  
Cuddy rolls her eyes while House lowers his head to Cuddy's belly and addresses the twins with "Sorry boys, the tip of your weenie will not look like Daddy's. But don't worry; you'll both have Daddy's big_gus_ dick_us_ genes."


	12. Chapter 12

***

Jake opens the door from the garage to the kitchen. He's just coming back from a friend's Christmas party. When he hears his dad yelling "it's about time you got home."  
Jake rolls his eyes and replies "Chill Dad, its 10:45. I have a whole 15 minutes before my curfew."  
"It's 10:45 in the real world. But out here in preggoland, it's like one in the morning."  
"Huh? Is mom okay?"  
"Yeah, she's fine. She just refuses to go to bed until her darling son has decorated the Christmas tree—something about family tradition yada, yada, yada."  
"I saw the Christmas tree (_in the living room_) last night and it's already decorated."  
"Well, apparently one Christmas tree is not sufficient. She has another one in the family room."  
"Oh, I didn't notice it."  
Cuddy walks in to the kitchen to greet her son "hey, hon. How was the party?"  
"Hi Mom. Party was fine. Dad was just telling me that you have a Christmas tree for me to decorate?"  
"Yeah, do you think I'm going to break our family tradition in our new home? Besides, you have triple the amount of stockings to put up this year."  
House pulls out a beer in the fridge and asks "triple?"  
Cuddy starts naming people "Jake, the twins, mom, Henry, you, me. Oh, I also invited Lina to join us."  
House begins arguing "why would the twins need stockings? It's not like that they can see them yet."  
Cuddy ignores House and excitedly tells Jake about the specially embroidered stockings she got for everybody.  
Jake smiles at his Mom's excitement and waits to see if his parents have finally settled on names for the twins.

***

As Cuddy fusses about the stockings, Jake unpacks his ornament collections.  
He individually shows them to his dad and House being House has a comment for each ornament. Jake has quite a bit of a collection, ranging from folksy tin painted ornaments from Mexico, to cutesy Celtic snowmen from Ireland, to charming London telephone booth, but the one that caught House's attention were the yearly ornaments. There was the 1990 Lenox baby's first Christmas ornament and the proceeding yearly ornaments that marked Jake's interest in the past fifteen years. Jake notices that his father becomes very quite when he pulls out a stethoscope ornament. It's a vintage hallmark ornament produced around 1970s, the colors are a bit faded and its one of two ornaments he owns that doesn't come in a keepsake box. Jake picks up the ornament and tells his dad "this one is my all-time favorite. I'm not sure why, but I remember begging mom for it since I was 4 or 5 years old. She finally let me have it when I was thirteen, right mom?" Jake immediately notes that both his parents are just gazing into each other's eyes as if they're having a conversation that he's not privy too.  
He hears his dad asks "you kept it after all these years?"  
His mom nods and states "yes, it's the only thing you've ever given me."  
House smiles and replies "I never gave it to you. You took it from me."  
Jake feels like he's in the midst of his parent having a moment but he's just way too curious not to interrupt them. He waves his hand in between his parent and says "ok, are you two talking about this ornament or completely something else?"  
Cuddy answers "Jake, that's your dad's ornament. His mother gave it to him when he got accepted at Hopkins, right Greg?"  
House simply nods.  
Cuddy continues "your dad had it dangling in his car's rearview mirror when we were still in Michigan. One night he took my…well, something from me so, and I took it in exchange for …it. He refused to return my…thing so I kept it ever since.  
"What did you take, dad?"  
"It's your mom's red thong."  
Cuddy yells "House!"  
House winks at his son and whisper loud enough for Cuddy to hear "and we weren't even near her bedroom drawer."  
Jake's face turns red and says "I think I'm going to just concentrate on putting this up."

"Mom, why do we have two Christmas trees this year?"  
Cuddy, who's sitting in the sofa with House answers "I just feel like it, I feel we're doubly blessed this year." House smiles at Cuddy's response and starts rubbing her belly.  
She adds "I like the one in the living room because its right beside your dad's piano. I always want to have a family picture taken near a piano and a Christmas tree." She point at the tree that Jake is decorating and says "this one is where we'll be opening our presents."  
House interjects "watch out, next thing you know we all have to wear our matching Christmas sweaters."  
Cuddy replies "There's nothing wrong with Christmas sweaters. Jake wears them."  
Jake retorts "yeah, when I was eight. I don't even own one anymore."  
Cuddy asks "what about that nice sweater that your Nana gave you last year? The one with Rudolph the red nose reindeer in front and his nose actually lights up?"  
Jake doesn't want to get caught wearing that sweater, so he immediately changes the topic by saying "Oh, did I mention that I've converted to another religion."  
House looks at his son and asks "have you decided to join me in my corner? There's always room for one more atheist ready to burn in hell."  
Cuddy rolls her eyes and asks her son "what is it this year?"  
Cuddy leans over and whisper to House "it's our yearly tradition. Every time he helps put up the Christmas tree, he pretends to renounce his Judeo-Christian faith and proclaim his allegiance to a new church."  
"Seriously Mom, I think I've found the one true church. I've decided to be a Pastafarian."  
Cuddy starts laughing and asks his son "Jake, I've heard of a Rastafarians but not of Pastafarian. You're just making that up, did you run out of realreligions already?"  
"No, I actually got a recruitment flyer from the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster in school."  
House snorts and says "I knew there's a reason why he picked Harvard instead of Hopkins. Where else can you get Hasty Pudding serve as a side order to your Flying Spaghetti Monster?"  
Cuddy defensively retorts "I'm sure those kids were just having fun."

All of sudden, House asks his son "Do you want to hang out with your old man during your winter break? I'll let you wear my lab coat and play with my stethoscope. And if you're really, really good, daddy will even let you pet his lapdog name Chase."  
Jake replies "gee, Dad how can I refuse such a deal. Do you mind throwing in some pocket protectors while you're at it?"  
House raises his brows and pretends to think and replies "I think I might be able to convince the king of pocket protector (_Wilson_) to part with some of his supply."  
"Speaking of protector, mom did you know that Dad sent me a big box of…" Jake stops as he notices his mom wincing in pain. "Mom, are you okay?"  
Both House and Jake quickly move to the sofa as they see Cuddy's face flushes.  
"Lise, talk to me what's wrong?"  
"I…the twins are just moving too much. I just felt a tightening in my stomach."  
"Braxton Hicks? When did it start?"  
"Just tonight. I've been feeling the contraction the whole night but it just got worst when the twins started moving."  
"You should be fine. As Keeler said, your cervix is still holding up. But I need you keep track of the frequency of your contraction, okay?"  
Cuddy nods and says "Greg, can you help me get to the bedroom?"

_**TBC  
**_


	13. Chapter 13

**

_**The Day before Christmas**_

One of the downsides of being on-leave from work for Cuddy is that she gets easily bored and starts finding things to keep her occupied.When she first shifted her schedule from full-time to part-time, she rearranged hers and House's entire closet. She still feels embarrass thinking about it since she had to interrupt House's differential and beg him to come home. He thought she was in labor only to find out that Cuddy literally couldn't get off the floor. She had sat on the floor to organize the bottom drawer and soon realized that she couldn't get up.

Now that she's been at home for a good whole week and is not physically up to re-organizing any things, she decides that it's time that she catches up with House.  
"Greg? Did your mom every mentioned how you were delivered as a baby?"  
"Lise, it's…" House looks over to the alarm clock and continues "six o'clock in the morning. Go back to sleep."  
"I can't. Every time the babies move I have to go to the bathroom."  
Cuddy starts playing with House's hair and says "Jake was an easy birth. He was on time and I never had any issues. But, I think these two will be a handful."  
House, whoseinsomnia doesn't allow him to sleep until almost two in the morning is now force to wake up and listen to Cuddy.  
"Are you still having contractions?"  
"Yes, but they've been irregular."  
"You know, you're already more than 35 weeks; the boys will be fine if you deliver now. You don't need to wait another week, Lise**."**  
"I don't want to deliver the babies just because it's convenient for me; I want to let nature take its course."  
House wiggles his brows and says "I know of a natural way to induce labor."  
Cuddy replies "You think that's a good idea?"  
"Why not?" House points his finger on both of them and says "Two out of two doctors recommend it."  
Before Cuddy can even reply, House is already spoon up behind her

***

Cameron and Chase are in the conference room chatting when they spotHouse and Jake walking into House's office.  
Cameron asks "who's that with House?"  
Chase looks over and replies "That's Jake. He is House's former intern. I guess he's back for the winter break."  
"He's a little bit too young to be a medical intern."  
"No, he's an intern-intern not a medical intern. He did all the documentations and write-ups that you gush about non-stop."  
"Oh, he did those? He's no more than eighteen"  
"Yeah, some ridiculously young age. Heard he's some kind of genius. I'm surprise you haven't met him."  
"No. I spoke to him over the phone when he set up my interview."  
"Yeah, he set up mine too. He also met me in the lobby and brought me up here for my interview with House. He even gave me a tour of the hospital before he left for school."  
"I think he was off when I had my interview. I waited almost an hour in the lobby because House forgot all about my interview. Good thing Wilson was kind enough to help me. He found House in the coma guy's room and I ended up being interviewed there."  
Chase shakes his head in amazement "wow! I can't believe he interviewed you in the coma guy's room."  
She looks over to the other office and ask "a genius, huh?"  
"Yup, I think he mentioned that he's a freshman at Harvard Med School."  
Cameron face lights up and says "House's has a sixteen year old son who's in med school."  
Before Chase can answer, Jake walks in the conference center and introduces himself to the two fellows. Chase shakes Jake's hand and tells him that it's nice to see him again. Chase looks over at Cameron who's waiting to be introduced and says "Jake, this is Dr. Allison Cameron. She one of House's fellow and a big fan of the department's operations manual that you wrote for us."  
Cameron smiles at Jake and offers her hands "Chase isn't kidding. That thing is a life saver and it's been my bible ever since I started here. You did a great and thorough job on it."  
Jake smiles back at Cameron. He feels his face flush at the flattery that the pretty fellow has just given him. Jake quickly replies "thank you. I'm glad it was helpful. I wasn't sure…"  
House interrupts the two by saying "we're here to diagnose our patient. You two ladies can exchange recipes later."  
Chase can't help but snigger at House's remark, Jake simply rolls his eyes, while Cameron gives House a dagger look.  
House limps near the white board when he quickly notices his son pull out a chair for Cameron to sit. He gives his son a WTF look, but Jake simply ignores him and walks over to the small desk on the side of the room."

After a few minutes of differentials, House calls out "Come on people give me something I can work with. It's the day before Christmas; I'm sure you two would rather go home and spend time with your family than be stuck here with me."  
A frustrated Chase replies "but we've tried everything, all the lab work came back negative."  
Cameron adds "we're obviously looking at the wrong place. Why are we concentrating on curing these various symptoms instead of finding the disease?"  
House sighs and answers "your team is down by a touchdown in the fourth quarter with two minutes left to play. You're 40 yards away from the goal lines. Do you run or pass?"  
Both Cameron and Chase give House a puzzled look. House groans and turn around to his son "Jake, what's the answer?"  
"Run. It's always 3 yards, 3 yards, 3 yards. And then it's always 4th and 1, and you make a first down and do 3 more yards."  
House proudly smile at his son and looks at his fellow and says "see even a freshman med student knows the answer. Cure the symptoms and it'll be a process of elimination."  
Chase defensively comes back with "I'm Australian; I don't know your type of football."  
Cameron mutters "I hate sports metaphors."

***

_**Christmas Day**_

House wakes up to see that the other side of the bed is empty. Cuddy's contractions begun coming at regular intervals and got more intense late last night. It kept them up most of the night, however her contractions stopped (_well, __became__ manageable_) and they finally went to bed at around three in the morning.  
A freshly showered Cuddy walks out of the bathroom and says "Greg, I think today is the day. Go take a shower and I'll start getting ready."  
House nods and asks "how far apart are your contractions?"  
"I'm timing it round 8-10 minutes apart."

Cuddy immediately goes into her administrative mode. She calls Dr. Keeler to inform her that she's on her way to the hospital; she calls Brenda to make preparations for her private suite, and phones Lina to bring her up to date. Lina wishes her good luck and assures her not to worry about Christmas dinner. Afterwards, she rides the elevator up and wakes up both her mom and her son to inform them that they're leaving for the hospital. She promises to give them a call before she delivers.  
Emma replies "Nonsense. Don't worry about us; we'll be right behind you both."  
She's coming out of the elevator, when she sees House limping out of their bedroom with his overnight bag and his cane.  
"Lise, where's your bag?"  
Cuddy answers "It's already in the hospital. I left it there a few weeks ago when I thought I might have to deliver early."  
House nods and says "Hmm…the car seats are in the car, and your bag is already in the hospital. What am I still missing? Oh yeah, the woman who's delivering the babies. Come on Lise, I don't plan to deliver my boys in a minivan by the side of the road."

_**TBC**_


	14. Chapter 14

***

Drs. Lisa Cuddy and Gregory House welcome their identical twins. Son Ethan James House arrived at 12:23 pm, weighing in at 6 lbs, 5 oz (20 inches). Twin brother Charles Philip House arrived 10 minutes later at 12:33 pm, weighing just over 6 lbs. (20 inches). Both boys arehealthy enough that they are taken directly to the regular nursery (_not the NICU_).

_Flashback begins__**  
**__The delivery room was a bit crowded as Dr. Keeler had prepared two teams to take care of each baby in case of complications. Cuddy handpicked all of the doctors and nurses that are present (with House's consent, of course). But their expertise __was__ never needed since both House boys are delivered without complications. Nurse Brenda ended up doing photographer's duties as she captured several candid moments including House kissing Cuddy's lips while holding her hand, House pointing at his son (to Cuddy) after Dr. Keeler lifted their son for a quick peek immediately after delivery, Cuddy fighting back the tears of joy as she held each of her boys for the first time, House cutting the cord of each of the boys, and the money shot has to be when both parents are caught gazing into each other's eyes as they each held one of their boys. ___

_Both House and Cuddy were very calm during the proceeding. After delivering the boys, Dr. Keeler informs the parents that it was the easiest MoMo twins she has ever delivered. "It seems the twins know how to play nice with each other." _

The PPTH nursery area consists of two large rooms (_the inner and outer room_); the outer room consists of a front desk, a hand washing area and the waiting area. After signing-in at the front desk, a staff takes visitors to the inner room. The inner room is where the babies are kept in warm see-through cribs. The far right of the inner room has a large, glass window that allows family and friends a great view of the newborns. The far left of the inner room has private partitions for mothers who want to nurse their baby or for parents who want to spend personal time with their baby.

About half an hour after giving birth, Cuddy demands to see her boys. A nurse wheelsher to the nursery; she is accompanied by her mom and Henry since both House and Jake arealready there. As Emma and Henry head to the wash area, Cuddy enters the inner room and immediately overhears Greg's voice calling someone an idiot.  
Cuddy rolls her eyes and calls out "Greg."  
House turns around to see Cuddy. While the nurse whom House just yelled at immediately scurries away in fear of getting fired by the Dean.  
"Greg, what's going on?"  
Jake reassures her mom "It was nothing mom, the nurse was just a little overwhelmed and didn't get to the boys quickly enough."  
"That idiot nurse just left Ethan crying without checking up on him. He could have been wet, or hungry or whatever" says House as he gently rocks Ethan in his arms. Ethan quickly stops crying and is now simply gazing at his dad. Cuddy smiles at how protective House is of the boys. Up until this moment, Cuddy hasn't really been sure what to expect from house.**  
**  
Cuddy, Emma and Henry are gushing oohs and ahhs over the twins. Emma points out that the boys have their mom's dark curly hair, nose and ears, while they got their dad's deep sea blue eyes, lips and dimples.  
Henry asks Jake "which one is Ethan and which one is Charlie?"  
Jake replies "Charlie is the one with Nana; he has the green cap on. Mom's carrying Ethan; he has the blue cap on. I don't know how to tell them apart without their cap yet."  
Charlie is contently sleeping in his Nana's arm. Meanwhile, Cuddy is rocking Ethan, who's widely awake and gazing at his mom's face.

After the delivery, Brenda handed back Jake's camera to him and he's been snapping non-stop ever since. He has pictures of the boys yawning, crying, and sleeping. But the precious ones are those taken of the boys with their mom, Nana and even their dad. House hates his picture being taken, so Jake has to be quick in taking those valuable unguarded moments.

Jake is satisfied that he has enough pictures; so he looks over to check on what his dad is doing.  
House is intently reading the twins' record.  
Jake asks "what's wrong Dad?"  
"Nothing, I'm just reviewing their stats. I saw their cords after Keeler delivered them and there weren't any knots. I'm glad there weren't any, but it is simply short of a miracle how they were able to be as active as they have been in the utero and not tie each other up."  
Jake replies "I'm not surprised. They have been bucking the odds ever since they were conceived. Weren't they holding hands in mom's womb? I really think they have each other's back."  
House simply shakes his head and says mockingly "I can see the headline now: 'Miracle babies born to atheist'."  
Jake smiles and corrects his father "you mean, 'Jewish mom and atheist dad gives birth to miracle twins on Christmas day.'"

***

Because of the Christmas holiday, many of the hospital staffs are on leave. And those who are left have heard of the news that the Dean has given birth to healthy twin boys. By the time House wheels Cuddy back to visit the boys for their feedings, they see a dozen or so hospital staff jockeying for position to get a glimpse of the Cuddy-House twins through the nursery's glass windows. When one of the staff recognizes them approaching, they instantly greet the duo like rock stars. The staffs eagerly congratulate Cuddy for her two healthy and handsome boys. They all know that House is the father, but no one dares to congratulate him in fear of being yelled at. The only exception is Elsa, the cafeteria lady. She's in her late sixties and doesn't care of House's reputation; she not only congratulates him but even gives him bear hug and a peck on the cheek. Cuddy smiles at Elsa's gesture, while House grumbles that he now has to wash up before he can carry the babies.

The duo walks in the nursery and are immediately met by Karen, the head pediatric nurse.  
She greets and congratulates both doctors. She also informs them that babies are maintaining their body temperature, no signs of breathing problem, infections or jaundice. Karen addresses Cuddy "I know that this is not your first baby, but this is your first twins. And twins are not like singletons so we just want to make sure that a Lactation Consultant (LC) is available to assist you when you first breastfeed them." She also adds "if we don't find any feeding issues, the boys can go home with you when you're discharge.

Cuddy and House heads over to their private partition and chats with the LC as they wait for the nurse to bring the babies over.  
Karen hands Charlie to Cuddy and the other nurse hands Ethan to House.  
Cuddy asks the LC "do I feed them together or one at a time?"  
The consultant replies "Honestly, it's a matter of personal preference. Feeding one baby at a time improves bonding between you and the baby. But it can be time consuming, remember you'd have to feed each or them at least 8 times a day. Letting them feed together will also improve your milk supply and it will be easy to remember who has had how much."  
Cuddy replies "let me try feeding Charlie first and see how he does. Daddy can keep Ethan occupy for a moment."  
While Cuddy tries to feed Charlie, the LC stands nearby giving Cuddy encouragement and pointers. When House notices that Cuddy is getting worried that Charlie is not finding her nipples, he asks the LC if she has any tips for daddy as well. The levity is just enough for Cuddy to relax a bit. It takes Charlie a few tries but he finally latches on to Cuddy's breast, House quickly gives his son an "atta boy" compliment. Cuddy nurses Charlie for at least half hour, while House plays with Ethan. It seems Ethan loves to grab onto dad's finger when dad places it in his palm. House immediately recognizes Ethan as 'Ham' in utero.  
After Charlie pulls away from his mom's breast, he shows his mom an expression of contentment on his face. Cuddy signals to House that she's done with Charlie and the two adults' switched babies. Cuddy tries to feed Ethan while House burps Charlie.  
Almost instantly, Ethan finds Cuddy's breast and goes to work.  
Cuddy looks over at House and says "I think someone is a 'boob man' like his daddy."


	15. Chapter 15

***

Cuddy's private family suite looks more like a luxury hotel room than a hospital room. The room is spacious and it includes a big comfortable sofa, large picture windows, and a full-size therapeutic adjustable bed with massage. The bathroom has a marble soaking tub with separate stall shower. It also has high speed internet access, his (_recliner_) and her (_glider_) chairs, and a 42-inch plasma screen television.

House wakes up laying next to Cuddy in her hospital bed, he looks over and sees the she's busy writing something on her little baby book.  
"Hey, what are you doing?"  
"I'm just writing down stuff that I need mom to buy for the boys."  
"Lise, they're a day old. What could they possibly need that you haven't bought?"  
"I'm not sure if the boys can fit inthe clothes that I brought for them. They're preemie size; I need mom to buy them newborn size clothes. Afterward, the clothes need to be wash so the boys won't develop rashes. I also need her to buy extra blankets just in case it continues to snow tomorrow."  
House smiles and leans over to kiss Cuddy. House knows how relieve Cuddy is that the boys are healthy and she's just beside herself that they'll get to come home with them tomorrow.

After House returns from the bathroom, he looks around the room and asks "all these years that I have been hanging out in coma guy's room when I could have had this?"  
Cuddy rolls her eyes and replies "if you read my memos, you would have known that this suite (_and two just like it_) was just added a few weeks ago as part of the expanded PPTH maternity center."  
"Your memos are boring. If you make them into comic cartoons maybe I'll read them."  
Before Cuddy can come back with a response, they hear a knock on the door.  
Cuddy immediately checks if House has his pants on, afterward, she calls for the person to come in.  
A young man in generic uniform comes in greets both of them with a smile and rolls a service table filled with food.  
Cuddy smiles back and thanks the young man. Meanwhile, House has a look of stun on his face and says "don't tell me, your memo also mentioned that room service meals are available with the room."  
Cuddy nods and grins at House.

After being monitored in the nursery for 24-hours, the twins are moved to Cuddy's private family suite on the second day. The twins get to spend quality time with their mom, dad, and big brother before they are allowed to go home on the third day.

***

When the Cuddy-House family get home, Emma and Lina surprise them with a 'belated Chrismukkah dinner.' The dynamic duos made Prime Rib Roast, Honey Glazed Ham, Roasted Chicken, Mash Potatoes, Salad, Green Bean Casserole, Potato Latkes with Applesauce and Sour Cream, and Christmas cookies. Everyone had a hearty meal and the babies sleep through the festivities.

Shortly after ten, Cuddy and House tuck the babies in their cribs and retreated to their own bedroom. Cuddy is pumping breast milk while House is laying in bed, when the topic of pictures comes up.  
"Greg, I'm thinking of sending a photo announcement cards for the babies."  
Greg grunts his approval.  
"Mom got them these two cute little Santa Clause outfits (_among other things_). Then it hit me, we should do a family picture together."  
Greg give another grunt and uhuh.  
"Maybe we could all wear something red. What do you think?"  
There is no answer. A quick look over by the bed confirms that House is passed out and already snoring lightly.

At around one o'clock, one of the babies cried. House gets up and feeds Ethan. Two hours later, Cuddy feeds Charlie.  
Cuddy wakes up at around eight in the morning. She instantly sits up when she sees the time and exclaims "Oh my god, the babies!"  
House quickly gets up and asks "what's wrong?"  
"It's already eight and I think we slept through the babies crying."  
Both House and Cuddy immediately walk out of their bedroom to the nursery. The babies are not in their cribs but they can hear babies' high-pitched squeaking. They two followed the sounds, which leads them to the family room. The twins are playing with their Nana and Henry.  
House and Cuddy breathe a sigh of relief.  
Emma spots both House and Cuddy and says "we woke up early, so we turned off the baby monitor and gave you two a few more hours of sleep."  
Cuddy replies "thank you, Mom."

***

It's picture time! The Cuddy-House familyis color coordinated in red clothing. Cuddy is wearing a simple yet elegant red dress. She garbs the twins in their cute little Santa Clause outfit. Jake wears a red sweater vest over his shirt and tie. Finally, House is wearing a red v-neck cashmere sweater over a white button down shirt and a dress pants. He initially protested at being force to dress up like George Little (_Stuart Little's human father_), but quickly relented after Cuddy got mad and accused him of not wanting to be part of the family. House thinks to himself "maybe if I dress up, she'll forgive me then I don't need to use my 'get out of jail' pass."

Jake TAKES lots of pictures of the twins' in their Santa outfit. He has pictures of them with Mom and Dad by the fireplace; Nana and Henry by the Christmas tree. One downside of being the photographer is that he is rarely in any of the pictures taken. So, Jake places the camera on a tripod and sets up the timer to take the picture of the entire family. Shortly before the flash goes off, little Charlie spits up his breakfast over his nice Santa outfit. Cuddy immediately swoop Charlie up, soothes him and changes his outfit.  
Emma follows Cuddy to the nursery with Ethan in her arms. She thinks to herself "oh good, the twins can wear the other outfit I got."

As Cuddy and Emma changes the twins' outfit (_a red sweater vestovera Burberry check shirt_), House walks over to the living room and begins playing the piano. Lured by the beautiful piece of music that House is playing, Emma and Cuddy with each carrying the boys in their arms stand by the living room entrance. Cuddy is simply moved by the piece that she sits next to House with little Charlie on her lap. Emma immediately gets an idea. She silently calls Henry and Jake over to the living room. She hands little Ethan to his brother and ask Jake to stand behind his mom and dad. Within minutes, Henry captures the most beautiful portrait of the Cuddy-House family.

After House finishes playing the piece, Cuddy asks "Who composed that?"  
House smiles, "I did," and points to his heart "it's from here. Do you like it?"  
"Yes, it's so beautiful."  
"I wrote it for you."  
"For me?"  
House nods and says "I started it twenty years ago, but could never figure out what came next…until now."  
"Charlie spitting up inspire you?"  
"No, you being a mom to our children inspired me."


	16. Chapter 16

***

House took a week off after the babies were born, then he and Jake went back to work after New Year's Day. The two were greeted with congratulations by both Cameron and Chase.  
Cameron beamingly informs House and Jake that Chase won all three babies' betting pools.  
Jake asks Cameron "what was the pool about?"  
Cameron replies "1) The gender of the babies. 2) The weight of the babies. I think Chase was off by an ounce on one of the babies but no one came close so he won that too. 3) The birth date when the babies will be born. I thought Brenda will get that since she's in Dr. Cuddy's delivery team."  
Jake smiles and says "that's amazing. Maybe Dr. Chase can pick a lottery tickets for us."  
Chase nervously answers "I just got lucky."  
Jake nods his head and replies "My dad said that the smarter you play, the luckier you'll be."  
Chase immediately changes the topic and inquires how the babies are.  
Cameron asks "do you guys have pictures of the babies?"  
Jake says "yes, actually mom told me to give you guys these." Jake hands both fellow a copy of the babies' birth announcement cards.  
Cameron gushes over how cute the twins were in their little white button-down shirts.  
Chase adds "Somehow I'm expecting them to be wearing t-shirt, blue jeans and NIKE Shox."  
House grins and says "they will if I dress them up."  
Jake can't help but admire how pretty Cameron is as she smiles widely at the babies' pictures.  
House immediately notices how his son is looking at Cameron and asks him "what's that in your sweater?"  
Jake looks down on his chest to see where his father is pointing and asks "there's nothing on my sweater."  
House replies "are you sure? I swear I see a pool of drool from you gawking at Cameron."  
Jake's face turns to beet red as he vehemently denies his dad's allegation.  
Cameron is surprised by House's remarks but quickly grins after seeing Jake's reaction.

House asks his fellows if they have any case for him. When they said no, he sends them off to do clinic duties.  
Chase asks "what about you? Where are you going?"  
House replies "I'm going to take a nap. I haven't had good night sleep since the two rugrats came home."  
As the two fellows were leaving, Jake asks Cameron is she doesn't mind if he shadows her around when she does her clinic duties. Cameron smiles and says "not a problem, Jake."

***

Wilson just got back from his trip to Portland where he and Julie spent the holiday with her parents. Julie decides to stay an extra week, so he ends up coming back alone. He's sorting through his mails and notices two envelopes address from House and Cuddy. He opens the first card and sees a Season's greeting card with a photo of Greg playing the piano, Lisa adoringly looking at Greg and holding a baby in her arms, behind them is Jake holding another baby. The entire family was color coordinated in red. The card is signed 'From the Cuddy-House Family.' He immediately thinks to himself "oh, Cuddy must have had the babies last week."

He opens the second card and reads: **INTRODUCING OUR TWO NEWEST BLESSINGS **followed by the cutest picture of the twins dress up in white button-down shirt laying on a white satin fabric. Wilson quickly notices that the twins have Greg's blue eyes and Lisa's smile. He reads further:

_**Ethan James House**__  
Born December 25th, 2004, 12:23 PM  
6 pounds, 5 ounces  
20 inches long_

_**Charles Philip House**__  
Born December 25th, 2004, 12:33 PM  
6 pounds  
20 inches long_

With love from  
Greg, Lisa and big brother Jake

Wilson is utterly shock that House named one of his sons after him. House didn't even bribe him for it. He immediately calls House to congratulate him.  
"So, how's fatherhood treating you?"  
"Fine. I think I have perfected the art of sleepwalking. I can change diapers, do feedings, and sleep at the same time."  
"You? Changing diapers?"  
"Why not? It's not like they can wipe themselves yet?"  
"I know, I just assume that Cuddy will do all if not most of the work."  
"She and Emma do most of the work during the day, but I take the night shift."  
"So, how long is her mother staying?"  
"A couple more weeks. I don't think Henry would appreciate if she stays longer than that."  
"What do you guys plan to do when her mother goes home?"  
"Lina is going to help out during the day. Lise and I will split the nights."  
"Did Cuddy tell you about her replacement yet?"  
"No, do I care?"  
"Yes, if it affects the mother of your children."  
House raises his brows and asks "ok, you got me. Now spill."  
"The Board decides to sack Mike. He's so incompetent he forgot to file a whole month's worth of billing to Medicaid."  
"Ok, how does this affect Lise?"  
"The Board asks her if she could come back earlier than her scheduled leave. Not physically come back to the hospital, they're basically giving her a green light to flexiplace from home."  
"What did she say?"  
"She said she'll discuss it with her family."  
"Okay."  
"Are you okay with Cuddy working from home?"  
"Do I look like I'll have any say in whatever she decides to do?"  
"Of course, you two are practically married. Actually, worst than being married, you have three kids, for god's sake."

***

_**A Month Later**_

Jake has gone back to Boston and Emma has returned home to London.  
Since the twins are very laid back and spend most of the day sleeping, Cuddy agreed to work part-time from home during her supposedly maternity leave. When Cuddy is working or has to make phone calls, Lina helps takes care of the twins.

By this time, House and Cuddy pretty have their routine down pack. The boys gets very active when their dad comes home at 530PM (_unless he has a case_) so they get to play with him for at least half an hour. At 6PM, House gives the twins their baths. By 7PM, Cuddy breastfeeds them and House has burping duties. After bath time, Cuddy reads them a book and then House plays the guitar or piano for them. By 8PM, the twins are tuck-in to their cribs. House and Cuddy usually have about 2-3 hours of alone time until they start feeding or changing diapers again.

At first, House hated Cuddy's regimented schedule since it reminds him so much of his father's military style of running his household. However, two straight nights of babies crying almost every hour thought him not to mess with Lisa's system cause mommy indeed knows best. Given that House's insomnia doesn't really allow him to sleep until (_at the earliest_) 2AM, he's assigned feeding and diaper changing duties until 4AM. It was during one of these late night bonding sessions with his sons that House discovers that the boys actually like playing with (_or be in close proximity of_) each other. He begin putting them in the same crib and finds out that the twins starts sleeping longer and their waking schedule becomes more similar.

Although the twins are considered identical, they each have very distinct personalities. Ethan is more outgoing and loves to please his parents. Charlie on the other hand is much more reserve and can be stubborn at times. Ethan enjoys his father's music, while Charlie is fascinated when his mom or his big brother reads him a book. They're both equally adorable and have their parents wrapped in their little fingers.  
One night, House has a particular difficult case he's working on so he didn't get home until around seven-thirty at night. Cuddy has given the boys a bath and is nursing them simultaneously in the family room. House walks in gives Cuddy and the boys a kiss and all hell broke loose. Instantaneously, the twins refuse to continue nursing and want to play with their dad. Cuddy gives up after the two boys organize a nursing strike and bit her nipples. Instead of getting mad, Cuddy can't help but laugh.  
"Greg, I swear these two are sending secret signals to each other. How can they possibly be doing the same exact thing at the same time?"  
House picks up one Charlie to give him a burp and replies "they're seven weeks, Lise. It's most likely just coincidence."

After both boys are properly burped, House and Cuddy places them in their swing by the living room so they can watch and listen to their daddy playing the piano. Cuddy asks House if his patient has improved and he says no. The two adults probably chatted for no more than five minutes when all of sudden they hear a high-pitch squeaking, followed by giggles. House and Cuddy turns around and see the twins simultaneously smiling, giggling and doing every cute thing that they can do to get their parent's attention. House and Cuddy looks at each other and say's "are you thinking what I'm thinking?" and the two just busted out laughing.


	17. Chapter 17

_**Author's Note:**__ Many thanks again to my __beta __**Ceciilee**__.__ I'm running out of superlatives to describe you so I'm stealing from G.W. Bush's vocabulary, 'you're simply fantabulous, and you never misunderestimate my writings.'_

_I do appreciate all types of feedback, it's the only way I know if you love, hate, or even reading this story ;-)_

***

**_Five Months Later_**

The twins are now six months old and Cuddy is back to working full-time. She brings the twins to the hospital's daycare center when she gets in the morning and visits them at least five times a day. House teases her that with the amount of time she spends in the daycare; she should just move her office inside the daycare center. Truth be told, House is no better than Cuddy. The only difference is House guises his paternal concerns with 'manly pursuit' like taking the twins down by the campus quad so Wilson can score phone numbers from cute young co-eds. Wilson is now in the midst of his third divorce and House doesn't mind pimping his sons to boost his best friend's ego.  
House asks Wilson "How much alimony does she wants?"  
"No more than the others."  
"Damn. Is there anything left on your paycheck after you pay up all three alimonies?"  
Wilson shrugs his shoulder "I don't really need that much. How about you?"  
"What about me?"  
"How are you and Cuddy getting along?"  
"Fine. We had a little scare last week when her Aunt Flow was a little late, but it was a false alarm so all is good."  
"Do you want another kid?"  
"No. I mean, I don't know."  
"If you don't want to, why not have a vasectomy?"  
"I can't do that. Lise might want to have more. I heard her talk to her mom on how it would be nice to have a little girl. You know… so she can buy pretty dresses and stuff."  
"And you would like to give her a little girl?"  
"If that's what she wants, it's the least I can do."  
Wilson nods and says "She loves being a mom and she's good at it."  
House corrects Wilson "correction—she's great at it!"  
Both House and Wilson each have a twin sitting on their lap. But when Charlie starts fussing, House automatically rocks him to sleep.  
Wilson looks at his friend in awe "if you told me five years ago that you'll be the one in a stable relationship with three kids and I would be the one with three failed marriages, I would have called you crazy. But, look at us now."  
House simply rolls his eyes and says "speaking of kids, Jake is coming home next week."  
"Is it summer vacation already? Wow, how time flies."  
"Yup! I'll probably have to fly up to Boston to help him haul back all his crap home."  
"You're not sure yet?"  
"No. He's putting most of his stuff in storage but he wants to bring home his bike. They got inter-state ridesharing program in school, so he's trying to arrange with someone who's driving a mini-truck down NJ, DE or MD."  
"I don't think we ever had ridesharing program back in my days, did you?"  
House replies "don't know. I just found excuses not to go home during breaks."

***

House walks into his office after dropping the twins back in daycare.  
Cameron frantically meets him and asks "where have you been? I have been looking for you everywhere."  
House raises his brows and replies "apparently, you didn't do a good job looking. What do you need?"  
"Your mom called three times. She and your dad are in the area. They're on their way to your dad's army reunion in Virginia. "  
"Marines. My dad was a marine."  
"Oh, ok. Anyway, she wants to know if it's okay for them to drop by."  
"What did you say?"  
"I said you're a very busy man and I will have you call her. That's it, I made no promises."  
House takes a deep breath and walks out of his office. He heads down straight to Cuddy's office, opens her door (_without knocking, of course_) and plops himself on her sofa.  
Cuddy looks at House and asks "what's wrong now?"  
"My parents are in town on their way to my father's reunion thing. Mom called to ask if they can come and visit."  
"Did you spoke to them?"  
"No, I need to think of an excuse first before I can talk to my mom."  
Cuddy stands to shoo House out of her office "ok, think of an excuse but do it somewhere else. I have a donor coming in two minutes."

***

House didn't think of an excuse quickly enough before his mom called to inform him that she and his Dad are down in the cafeteria waiting for him.  
House limps to the cafeteria and greets his parents "Hey, what brought you two in town?"  
"Your Dad is having a reunion with his old Marine Corp buddies. They're spending the weekend down at Quantico, Virginia."  
House addresses his Dad "Great. I'm sure you'll have fun."  
Blythe nervously tells her son "I just got a call from my friend Annabelle. She is not coming with her husband Tom to the reunion. Your dad will be with his buddies the whole time and…"  
John interrupts Blythe and says "Your mom wants to know if she can stay with you for the weekend. She misses you and would rather spend time with you than see me with my buddies."  
House is a little surprised but quickly replies "of course, mom. You're very welcome to stay with me for the weekend."  
John blustery says "great! I'll leave you to take care of your mom then. I'm gonna head out now while there's still light."  
John instructs House to wait by the Hospital's front door, so he can drop his mom's luggage.  
House nods at his dad while John gives his wife a peck on the cheek.

Blythe patiently waits in House's office while House and his team try to diagnose a new patient.  
Wilson sees Mrs. House, greets her and chats with her for awhile.  
After she mentions that she's staying with House for the weekend, he runs straight to Cuddy's office to warn her.

Wilson asks "Did he tell you yet?"  
Cuddy looks at Wilson and replies "tell me what? What did Greg do now?"  
"He invited his mom to stay with you guys for the weekend."  
Cuddy smiles and answers "no, he hasn't mentioned it to me yet."  
"Then, why are you smiling?"  
"Nothing, I just find it amusing that the great Gregory House can't come up with a good excuse to his mom. I'm actually looking forward to spending time with Blythe; maybe she can teach me a thing or two on how to keep Greg in line."

Cuddy calls House and informs him that she'll pick up the twins and meet him at the parking lot in 15 minutes.  
House says okay, hangs up the phone and thinks of how to best break the news to Lisa about his mom and about Lisa and kids to his mom.  
Blythe asks "is everything okay, Gregory?"  
"Yes, of course. We're leaving in 15 minutes. If you need to go to the ladies room, now would be a good time."  
Blythe says "ok, I think I'll do that."  
After her mom leaves the room; House calls Cuddy back to inform her of the situation.

Cuddy has buckled-up the kids in the minivan and waits for House and Blythe.  
The twins are now at the age where they crave attention. And one sure way that they can get attention from the adults is to starts talking. Their conversation goes like this: mama mama dada dada baba baba nana nana. Of course, Cuddy believes mama refers to her, House thinks that dada refers to him, Jake assumes that baba means big brother and Emma feels that nana is definitely referring to her. Today is no different from any other day, as the boys decide that they should have a chat with each other while waiting for their dad. Cuddy looks at the back seat mirror from her 'conversation mirror' (_It's an overhead convex mirror that allows the driver to see what's going on in every seating position in the van_) and can't stop giggling at her boys.

House walks his mom over to the minivan, and she spots Cuddy in the driver's seats.  
Blythe asks "Isn't that Dr. Cuddy? Why are we riding with your boss?"  
House answers "I'm sortta…living with her."  
Mom is pleasantly surprised and says "Oh ok. Are those her kids?"  
"Yeah. Mom, Lisa and I are kindda together too."  
"Oh…that's good Gregory, I'm happy for you. It's great that you're okay with her kids?"  
House replies "Hmmm, they're all my kids, Mom."  
Blythe yells "What? I have grandchildren and you never told me about them!" She pushes House over in excitement to see her grandchildren.

_**TBC**_


	18. Chapter 18

_**Author's Note:**__ My thanks again to my __beta __**Ceciilee**__, her edits, thoughtful insights, and patience is greatly appreciated. _

_I do appreciate all types of feedback, it's the only way I know if you love, hate, or even reading this story ;-)_

***

Blythe is beside herself that she doesn't know what to do first, hug Cuddy or the twins.  
When Cuddy turns on the automatic side door to reveal the twins; tears starts falling on Blythe's face as she feels the sense of overwhelming joy.  
House quickly looks at Cuddy for help and says "Mom, don't cry. You'll frighten the kids."  
Blythe immediately wipes her tears and says "of course. I'm sorry."  
By this time, Cuddy has left the driver's seat and is now beside Blythe. Cuddy tries to console the older woman by putting her arms around her and whispers "its okay. You have quite a bit to digest."  
Blythe replies "I'm almost sixty years old and I have pretty much given up all hope of ever having a grandchild. And now I find out I have two. It is a bit overwhelming."  
"Ahem…" House clears his throat and before he could say anything, his mom glares at him and says "don't tell me I have more than two?"  
House nods and Blythe is now doubly confused.  
Cuddy quickly frown at House then tells Blythe "why don't you meet your grandchildren that are here. I'm sure Greg can explain everything to you later."  
Blythe replies "of course. Thank you Lisa."

House interrupts by saying "can I shut the door now? Just in case you two forgot, we're still in the middle of the parking lot."  
Cuddy gives him the look that says "shut up or else..."  
Since the twins are occupying the first row of the back seats, Blythe and Cuddy sit on the second row.  
The twins are in rear-facing infant car seats that make it convenient for both Cuddy and Blythe to see them face to face.  
Cuddy introduces the twins to Blythe and tells the boys that Blythe is their grandma.  
Cuddy asks "do you want them to call you granny or grandma?"  
"I would love for them to call me Oma."  
Cuddy tells the boys "this is your Oma."  
Simultaneously Ethan and Charlie say "mama."  
Cuddy corrected the boys by pointing at herself and saying "mama," she points at Blythe and says "Oma."  
Blythe looks at the boys intently and says "they have Gregory's eyes and your smile."  
Cuddy nods.  
During the drive home the boys entertain the adults by doing their nonsensical conversation with each other again.  
Blythe keeps laughing at the boys' antics and of course, the boys love the attention that their Oma is giving them.  
When Cuddy informs Blythe that they are home, she replies "oh, that was quick."  
Cuddy nods and replies "yes, we only live a few blocks away from the hospital."

***

Shortly after they arrive, Cuddy tells House to give the boys their bath while she gives Blythe a quick tour of their home.  
House nods and takes the boys to their bedroom.  
While Cuddy prepares the bed in the guest room, Blythe looks out at the large window and says "you have a very beautiful home. The location is very serene and the view of the campus is breathtaking from here."  
"Thank you. Yes, Greg and I lucked out on this house." Cuddy proceeds to tell Blythe about how they were able to purchase the house. Cuddy also mentions that the former owner of their home is also the benefactor that established Greg's endowed professorship and financed the creation of Greg's diagnostic department.  
Blythe says "it seems like that he really believed in Gregory."  
"Yes, he did. And Greg's nod for Mr. Tisch's support is to name one of our boys after him. Charles was the late Ted Tisch's middle name.  
Blythe smile and says "little Charlie also got his daddy's middle name. I'm surprise that none of the boys are named Gregory."  
Cuddy replies "our eldest son Jacob's (_Jake_) middle name is Gregory."  
Blythe says "I have been thinking, was Jake the nice boy whom we met in the cafeteria?  
"Yes, I believe he introduced himself as Greg's intern."  
"I knew it. After that lunch, I told John that he reminded me so much of Gregory."  
"Really? How's so?"  
"It's his eyes—both literally and figuratively. Aside from having the same colored eyes as Gregory, I saw how he looked when Gregory didn't introduce him to us. I've seen that look of disappointment from Gregory many times, especially with his father."  
Cuddy nods and says "It was an unfortunate incident and I wish it hadn't happened. But Greg apologized to Jake and they've made up since."  
With weary eyes, Blythe says "I wish John would do the same to Gregory."

***

After unpacking her bags and settling in her room, Blythe goes down to the main floor to see if Gregory's family is ready.  
Lisa has mentioned that after the twins have their baths and feedings, the boys enjoy having their reading and music time.  
Blythe looks around and sees the various pictures displayed all throughout the rooms. There's a picture of Lisa and (_pre-teen_) Jake out in the woods camping, Gregory and Lisa with Jake in a graduation gown, the twins wearing cute little Santa outfit being carried by Jake, Lisa and her older sister (_mom_) holding the babies, Gregory sleeping with one of the boys on his chest and a lovely picture of the whole family by the piano. For the first time in a long time, Blythe feels relieve and happy. She's relieved that something positive is happening in her son's life. After the infarction and how Stacey left soon after, she's hasn't stop worrying about her son. She is very happy that her Gregory has found Lisa to share his life with and that the two are blessed with three healthy handsome boys.

Blythe's thoughts are interrupted by House asking if she wants to feed Ethan.  
She replies "I would love to."  
Cuddy and little Charlie join them a few minutes after.  
After Cuddy and Blythe finish feeding the twins, House hands his mother a couple of books to read to the twins. Blythe reads to the twins like a pro and the twins love it. Charlie who's sitting in his Oma's lap starts clapping, which then prompts Ethan, who is sitting in Cuddy's lap to follow suit. Then, Ethan decides to up his brother by giggling and shaking his arms. Charlie looks at his brother, decides he can't be bothered and starts nuzzling his head on his Oma's chest. Blythe and Cuddy are laughing hysterically at the boys' antics. House who is busy tuning his guitar looks up to see what the fuss is about. He sees his mom laughing and realizes that he hasn't seen her laugh this much since he was 11 years old.

_**Flashback Begins  
**__House's father has just been called to serve another tour of duty in Vietnam. At 32 years old, Maj. John House is considered a veteran. He has survived two tours before; has two shrapnel wounds and long list of commendations to prove it._

_John served his first tour in Vietnam from '66-'67 as a helicopter pilot (in spite of the fact that he's a trained F-4 Phantom fighter pilot). He was an idealistic 26-year old 1st Lt., leaving a 22-year old wife and a 4-year old son was just an inconvenient fact that every marines live with everyday. When Lt. House arrived in Vinh Long, his superior informed him that his F-4 in still en route and was held up by DOD red tape. Eager to experiences frontline action, he volunteered to fly anything available. _

_On his second tour in '69-'70; John was a weary Marine captain who flew numerous sorties until his F-4 Phantom fighter plane was shot down. After his F4 was shot down, he was forced to embed with the Army battalion that rescued him. It was during this time that he personally witnessed numerous soldiers dying in battles because they were undisciplined and ill-prepared for the job. Capt. House resolved to right the wrong and was determined to do everything in his power to train young marine recruits properly. He believes that the rampant drug use and high suicide rate within the army ranks is a symptom of weak and ill-prepared soldiers. He thinks that marines can do better and should train new recruits not only to shoot machine guns properly but also mentally prepare them to see their comrade get blown up to pieces right next to them if they don't do their job. _

_John did not only demand discipline from his recruits but he also expect it from his only son, Gregory. When his nine year old son is two-minutes late for dinner because he got distracted in reading his book, Gregory is sent to bed without supper. When young Gregory fidgeted a little too much in Church, he was force to squat with his hands extended in front of him for two hours. When Gregory complains about finishing his vegetables, he was forced to only __eat __vegetables for two weeks._

_Even at that young age, Gregory feared his father. So, when the eleven -year old Gregory heard the news that his father is being redeployed to Vietnam for the third time, he was ecstatic. For one, it means that the family will not be moving to yet another military base for at least two years. Second, he'll actually get a chance to ask Melinda Hutchinson out to the school dance. Finally, he and his mom can to do fun stuff together like attend the local Jazz festival._

_Blythe was teaching young Gregory how to dance when he accidentally step on his mom's foot. And when tries to jump to avoid it, he slipped and landed on his behind. Blythe asked her son if he was alright, he replies "actually, the floor was kinder to my tush than Maj. House's hands." Both mother and son shared a look and starts laughing hysterically.  
__**Flashback ends**_

"Greg? Greg? Do you want to play the guitar for the kids now?"  
House snaps out of his daydream and says "of course."

_**TBC**_


	19. Chapter 19

_**Author's Note:**__ Thank you so much to my __beta __**Ceciilee**__, for__ not only reviewing__ this chapter but for making sure that I stay on point._

***

After Cuddy and Blythe put the twins to sleep at the same time, they join House in the family room. Blythe asks a lot of questions about her grandchildren as if she'll be quizzed at a later date. She learns that Jake not only shares a name with his dad but also his birthday.  
Blythe informs House "that's one of the reason I wanted to stay with you this weekend because your dad and I are going to the UK next week during your birthday."  
House nods and says "its okay Mom, the kids will all be here."  
Blythe asks "Jake too?"  
"Yes, he's coming home for the summer."  
"Is he going to work with you again this summer?"  
"I hope so. But I now have three full-time fellows on staff; he might get bored."  
Cuddy interjects "maybe he can do an internship rotation in other departments? I know Dr. Nepar would love to have him in Pediatrics, he can also do a rotation in oncology, and of course, diagnostic.  
House nods in agreement "we'll just have to ask him next week."

House asks his mom "are you and the Colonel going to the UK for business or for pleasure?"  
Blythe smiles and replies "a little bit of both. Your father has been invited to speak about his Vietnam experience at the Queen's University in Belfast. Then later that week your father's cousin Archie's daughter is getting married in Edinburgh."  
Cuddy asks "will you be staying in London?"  
"Yes, after Scotland we'll be in London for at least five days."  
Cuddy suggests "you should call my mom. I'm sure she'll be delighted to meet you for lunch or something."  
"That would be great. I'm looking forward to the London leg of our trip because John got us tickets to the Hampton Court Festival."  
House asks "I'm surprise that the Colonel agreed to attend what he'll call a 'frivolous concert.'"  
"He's doing it for me. He bought the tickets as an early birthday gift for me."  
House nods, because even how much of an SOB his father is to him, he always treated her nice.

After Cuddy excuses herself for the night, Blythe asks her son why he has hidden his family from her and his Dad all these time.  
House knows he can't lie to his mom so he replies "because I love them and I don't want the Colonel to treat them like he treated me."  
"He treated you like his own son."  
"Did he mom? He treated me like I was one of his marine recruits."  
"He just wanted you to be disciplined and strong."  
"Of course, pulling me out of bed before dawn and pinning me to the ground, ridiculing me for my lack of preparation for surprise attack comes very handy in real life."  
"Gregory, your father didn't want to hurt you. He just wants what's best for you."  
"I want what's the best for my family too. I don't want my boys to be subjected to cruel punishments in the guise of discipline."  
Blythe shakes her head and asks "why do you hate your dad so much?"  
House replies "how could I not?"  
"Gregory, you can't hide your family from your father forever."  
House nods and says "Don't worry about it, mom. I will deal with him later."  
"Ok, I'm going to enjoy this weekend with my grandchildren. And I hope you know what you're doing because I plan to see more of my grandchildren in the future."

***

The weekend goes by real quick. House, Cuddy, Blythe and the twins really have a great time.  
The twins simply adore their Oma because she lavishes them with all the love and attention they want.  
Blythe also teaches Cuddy a few of House's favorite recipes and shares several stories about her family and Greg in particular.  
Cuddy enjoys Blythe's company and she can see why House loves her. She's full of spirit, optimism and always has a positive spin on everything.

Late that night while House and Cuddy are lying in bed, she asks him "did your father ever hurt your mom?"  
"No, he loves her. His hatred is only directed towards me."  
"Why do you hate each other so much?"  
"I didn't always hate him. Most of the times, he was away on assignment and all I needed to do was behave when he was at home. However, I quickly learned that nothing I did was ever good enough for him. I started fearing him because of his cruel punishments. Mom always used to say that dads are supposed to discipline their kids to prove their love. But when I turn twelve and I found out that he's not my real father, I stopped seeing those punishments as acts of paternal love but mere torture of a kid half his size."  
"What do you mean he's not your real father?"  
"I looked at the facts. First of all he was deployed on training exercises off Okinawa during the time I had to be conceived."  
"Your mom mentioned earlier that she and your dad got married shortly after he graduated from Annapolis. She was eighteen and a year after, she had you. You don't believe your mom cheated on your dad shortly after they got married?"  
"I don't know, but here are more facts: My father's second toe is longer than his big toe. Mine isn't. And I also have a distinctive birthmark on my scalp that matches a certain friend of the family."  
"You came up with all of this when you were twelve? I'm surprise you didn't tell him."  
"I did."  
"Oh my god. How did he take it?"  
"He didn't speak to me that whole summer. Anything he wanted to say, he type up and slipped it under my door."  
"What are you going to tell him tomorrow?"  
"I'll tell him the truth. He can either accept it or reject it. Now that mom knows about us and the kids, I don't really care what he thinks."  
"Are you going to allow him near the boys?"  
"Only if we are with the boys. He'll just have to accept that it's my family, my house, and my rules."  
"Greg?"  
"Yes Lise?"  
"I love it when you take charge like that."  
House puts his arms around Cuddy's waist and pulls her closer and starts kissing her on the lips. He whispers in her ears "do you want me to show you how I take charge in bed?"

***

John calls Blythe early Sunday morning informing her that he's on his way. Blythe tells him to drive safely and asks him to call back when he's near Princeton.  
"Ok, I should be there by noon."  
"Gregory has moved to a new house. It's near the hospital so call back when you're nearby, okay?"  
At around noon, House gives his dad the direction to his house and mentions that he'll wait for him outside.

As John pulls up in the driveway, he sees his son sitting and waiting for him on the front porch.  
"You didn't have to wait for me out here. I could easily ring the doorbell myself."  
House stands up and points to the chair "Actually, I need to talk to you in private."  
John gives his son a skeptical look and asks "what have you done this time? Did you get fired again?"  
House ignores his father sarcasm and nervously says "No, I wasn't fired. Before you go inside, I just want to let you know that ours may not be a traditional family but my partner and I are in a committed a relationship."  
John looks at his son incredulously and states "Oh god! You're a homo. It makes sense now. You're always with that other doctor. What's his name?"  
House groans loudly and interrupts John "No! I'm not gay and Wilson is not my partner. What I want to say is… I'm in a relationship with Lisa Cuddy, and we have three kids.  
John is relieved to hear that his son is not gay but asks "Lisa Cuddy? Your boss?"  
House nods.  
"That explain why you still haven't been fired. Are you two married?"  
"No"  
"Is she married to someone else?"  
"No! And I'm not married to anyone else either."  
John gives House a puzzled look "why would you want your kids to grow up bastards?"  
"As I said, we don't have a traditional family but Lise and I love our children. They're not bastards and you better not call them that in front of Lise."  
"I can call anyone anything I want. This is the United States of America. I fought for the right to be able to say what I want to say to whomever I want to say, much less to my own son."  
"You did earn that right Colonel. However when you enter my house, you'll respect my family and my rules. My rules are simple: Lisa is the mother of my children; you'll treat her like you treat your own mother. My kids are kids, they're not your little marines nor are they planning to join the marines. Do I make myself clear, Colonel?"  
"I hear you loud and clear. You don't want me in their life."  
"If that's what it takes for you to respect my family, then yes. You may stay out here and I'll inform mom that you've arrived."  
"No."  
"What?"  
"I don't want you to call you mom. I want to meet your partner and my grandchildren."  
House nods and asks his dad to follow him.

_**  
TBC**_

_**Author's Note #2:**__ Please continue clicking the "Review this story/chapter" button at the bottom of this page. I do appreciate all types of feedback, it's the only way I know if you love, hate, or even reading this story ;-)_


	20. Chapter 20

**_Author's Note:_**_ Thank you again to my beta **Ceciilee**, for taking the time to review this chapter and ensuring that everything is copacetic.  
_

***

John follows his son as they enter the house and notices the grand staircase to the upper floor.  
He thinks to himself, "How in the world does Gregory go up there?"  
To his left is the living room he immediately sees Gregory's piano flanked by two baby swings. To his right is a formal dining room that can serve at least a dozen people. As they pass the foyer, he sees a spacious modern kitchen but his eyes are drawn to Blythe and Lisa.  
Blythe waves excitedly and yells "John, come meet your grandsons."  
John reluctantly walks pass the kitchen to the breakfast table to meet his grandsons.  
Blythe and Cuddy are sitting at each end of the table opposite each other. Ethan is seated to the left of Blythe and Charlie is seated to the right of Cuddy. Both boys are sitting side by side on their high chairs on far side of the table.

John sits on the chair opposite the twins to the right of Blythe and House sits next to him. Blythe introduces the twins and tells the boys that the man in front of them is their Opa. Charlie stares at his Opa for a second and decides that his corn and butternut squash lunch is much more interesting. Ethan on the other hand, gives his Opa a big smile and starts banging his sippy cup on the tray. Well after about five minutes of banging and all the adults continues to chat, John stands up and walks over to Ethan. With a thundering voice, John orders Ethan to stop banging.  
Lisa is taken aback by John's action and immediately informs John that "Greg and I do not shout at our children. We calmly explain to them why we don't approve of their actions, besides Ethan is just expressing his excitement."  
John looks at Lisa as is if she has grown a second head. He was about to respond when Blythe pulls his arms and asks him to sit back down.  
House who was in the walk-in pantry picking up the boys' fruit desert, immediately limps back to kitchen. House comes back just in time to see Ethan bang his sippy cup again and splattering his apple juice all over the Colonel's shirt. And when he sees the Colonel all wet, he decides to blow raspberries that sent his garden vegetables lunch flying all over John's face.

Lisa immediately takes the cup away from Ethan and scurries over to get some wet paper towels. She hands the paper towel over to John and says "Ethan is not used to being yelled at; he now thinks that you are playing with him." Blythe also grabs more paper towels to wipe Ethan's face and all the food that has landed all over the breakfast table.  
John hasn't move an inch and is still standing next to Ethan; he is simply stun at the development.  
House, who is very amused by what he saw, can't help but mentally give his son a high-five. Holding the two bottles of baby food he asks "do you prefer apple banana or bananas, peaches & raspberries for desert?"

As Blythe takes her husband up to the guest bathroom to take a quick shower, she asks House to get his father's bag from the car.  
Meanwhile, House and Cuddy continues feeding the boys their desert.  
Cuddy scolds Ethan and gently tells him that "it's not polite to blow your food like that. Aside from making a mess, you didn't give a nice impression to your Opa."  
House retorts "he's six-months old for god sake, he doesn't know the difference. You guys are giving him mix signals— it's cute when he's blowing raspberries any other time and now you're telling him it's not polite when he's eating."  
Cuddy replies "I know, but it doesn't mean we stop teaching our kids the difference between acceptable and non-acceptable behavior."  
House sighs loudly and whisper to his son "Just between you and me kid. I think the Colonel deserved it."  
Cuddy rolls her eyes and replies "I heard that."

John takes a quick shower and sees Blythe waiting for him in the bedroom.  
"Can you believe how undisciplined that kid is?"  
"He's six months old. Besides, Ethan was just excited to see you. Banging his cup is his way of saying hi to you."  
"No, banging his cup is a sign that his parents didn't teach him manners."  
"Greg and Lisa are doing a great job with their kids. You cannot in all honesty tell me that you are able make a good judgment of what kind of parent they are when you've only been with them for less than five minutes."  
"I'm a marine. I'm trained to make split-second judgment on battlefields all the time."  
"Well, John you're not on the battlefield, this is your son's home. Those cute little boys are not your marines, they're your grandchildren."  
"I know. Why does everyone keeps reminding me that they're not marines?"  
Blythe raises her brow and smile at her husband.  
After realizing that maybe he was a bit harsh with Ethan, "I just never have been a grandfather before. Heck, I wasn't even around when Gregory was a baby."  
Blythe pats her husband on the shoulder and says "I know. I'll be here to give you a dirty look or kick you in the shin if you step out of line. Besides, you're a marine. You'll adapt, improvise and overcome."  
John smiles at his wife and says "Hurrah!"

After Cuddy clean-up the boys, House dress them up in onesies. He takes the twins to the family room and safely straps them on their baby loungers.  
Shortly after, John and Blythe come down with their luggage and join House and the twins.  
Blythe asks House "what do you think will be a good gift for Jake on his birthday?"  
"Hmmm…I'm not sure. You'll have to ask Lise about that."  
"I'm sure you have some idea. What does Jake like? What are his hobbies? Does he collect anything?"  
House ponders a bit and says "he likes music; he plays the piano and the guitar."  
John adds "just like you."  
House nods at his dad and adds "he rides a motorcycle, he's very good with computers, and he used to row for Cambridge as an undergrad. He has a collection of Christmas ornaments. Although, I'm not sure if he really collects them or he just keeps everything his mother gives him or his Nana sends him. The more I think about it, you really need to speak to Lise about this."  
John is sitting on the recliner across from the twins, he put on his glasses and steps closer to the twins to decipher what's written on their shirts. Ethan and Charlie are sporting a "My Mom is a MILF" onesies. John shakes his head and mumbles "yeah, these boys are definitely Gregory's kids."

***

_**The following Week**_

Cuddy is folding the laundry in the sofa while House and the twins are all lying on the floor. Well, more like House is lying on the floor and the twins are using him as a human jungle gym.  
Cuddy warns House "be careful Greg, the carpet isn't the same as the bed. If they fall off you, it's going to hurt really badly."  
"Yeah, yeah, yeah" Greg reluctantly sits up and gently places the twins on the carpet. Ethan sits like his dad while Charlie starts rolling over and over and over.  
"Good job Charlie! Do you think you can roll back to daddy?"  
Cuddy interjects "Not yet. He only knows how to rollover on one direction."  
Cuddy sees how House painfully stands up to retrieve Charlie and mentally reminds herself to check up on House's Vicodin dosage lately. Ever since the twins were born, House has been trying to cut back on his Vicodin intakes and she knows that it hasn't been easy for him. She's very worried how he's going to keep up when the boys start crawling, walking or running.

"Greg, I was thinking that we should do a cook-out next weekend for your and Jake's birthday."  
"Hmmm…okay, we can finally use the new grill."  
"Let's invite Wilson and your team."  
"Yes to Wilson, but no to my team."  
"Why?"  
"Because I don't want them snooping around our house and your son will probably end up drooling all over himself gawking at Cameron."  
"Jake? I didn't know he had a crush on Cameron."  
"Yeah, he never asked her out or anything. He just follows her around like a lost puppy."  
Cuddy smiles and replies "that's kind a sweet. How did Cameron take it?"  
"Not bad actually. She treats him like a little brother so your son won't get the wrong idea. However, I don't think Chase likes Jake hanging around his girl."  
"Chase is dating Cameron? Oh my god, what else do I not know happening in my hospital?"  
"You know that new resident in the ER?"  
"Yes, Dr. Smith. Why?"  
"Caught him with a Murse (_Male Nurse_) in the janitor's closet."  
"Oh god, Dr. Smith is gay?"

Before House can answer, a voice interrupts them saying "do you two ever stop gossiping about your co-workers?"  
Cuddy turns around with a shock look on her face "who are you and what have you done to my son?"  
House smiles broadly at Jake "I would give you a hug but I'll have to drop these two. Love the new look by the way."  
Jake smiles back at his dad and look over to his mom "Mom, it's not that bad!"  
"Yes, it is. You look like a grizzly bear. You need a haircut and a shave, stat!"  
Jake grins at his mom and says "if I promise to get a haircut and shave off my beard, will you give your eldest son a hug?"  
Cuddy rolls his eyes and gives her son a big hug. Then she says "you lost some weight too. All I can feel are bones, you haven't been eating right. Is everything okay?"  
"I've been eating fine Mom. If you're offering, I could use a sandwich right about now."  
Cuddy kisses him, pats his cheek and walks over to the fridge to make him a sandwich.  
Jake looks at the twins and asks "do you guys remember your big brother Jake?"  
The twin recognizes Jake's voice and starts flailing their arms.

***

**_Author's Note #2:_**_ Please continue clicking the "Review this story/chapter" button. I do appreciate all types of feedback, it's the only way I know if you love, hate, or even reading this story ;-)_


	21. Chapter 21

_**Disclaimer:**__ All rights belong to Fox and David Shore.__**  
Author's Note #1:**__ Big thanks to my __beta __**Ceciilee**__. You're simply the best! I'm bowing and chanting "I'm not worthy! I'm not worthy!"_

_**Author's Note #2:**__ The last two scenes are excerpts from one of my favorite House episode titled "The Three Stories." No copyright infringement is intended. The dialogues are just way too perfect to mess around with so I'm keeping it as is._

***

It's perfect summer cookout weather, the sun is shiny and the temperature is in the 70's F.  
House has set the retractable awnings to cover about half of the deck, just enough to shade the outdoor dining area. Jake stocked up the cooler with ice, beer, juice and soda and begins firing-up the grill. He's in charge of the grill so he cooks some burgers, salmon, veggies, and Filipino pork barbecue (_Lina marinated them especially for House_).

The gathering is pretty low key with just the Cuddy-House family along with Wilson and Lina.  
Everyone is seated around the outdoor dining table enjoying their meal when the phone rings. Cuddy walks into the house, answers the phone, walks back out and turns on the speakerphone.  
"It's my mom; she wants to wish you both a happy birthday."  
Emma greets House and her grandson a happy birthday and tells them that she bought each of them a very special gift.  
Jake asks "You did?"  
Cuddy hands Jake two nicely wrapped medium size boxes.  
House grabs Cuddy by the waist and pulls her onto his lap and asks "Emma said I have one. Where's my gift?"  
Cuddy looks at House and tells him "you can open your gift later."  
House wiggles his brow and whisper "is it something sexy that you'll be wearing for me tonight?"  
Cuddy gives him seductive look and whispers back "you'll have to wait and find out big boy."  
House has a smug grin plastered on his face for a good few minutes as he tries to imagine what Cuddy has in store for him.  
Jake asks his Nana "do you want me to open it now?"  
Emma replies "yes. I hope you like them."  
Jake smiles as he opens the first box to reveal a MOMO design motorcycle helmet and immediately tells his Nana that it's "totally rad." Jake opens the second box to reveals an electric shaver/trimmer kit.  
Emma says "I heard from your mom that you had taken on your dad's unshaven look."  
House interjects "it's a hereditary trait. Besides, his new look got him on the list of top 10 hottest men in PPTH."  
Wilson rolls his eyes because House has been quoting this list since he found out that he was selected number one.

As Jake promised his mom he would take care of his grizzly bear look; unfortunately, he must have got the instruction mixed-up. Jake now sports a buzz cut which highlights his deep sea blue eyes and his chiseled cheekbones. And instead of shaving off his beard, he trimmed it to a closely cropped "designer stubble" look like his father. Because of the fact that Jake has the same build, close to same height and similar stance as his father; he is often mistaken for his father from afar. Cuddy doesn't press her son about shaving off all his facial hair since House is beaming with pride about his boy sporting his signature look. She also knows that his son has been very conscious about appearing his age. She overheard him telling his dad that people take him more seriously when they don't know his real age and his facial hair makes him look older.

Jake received a Gibson Les Paul guitar from his parents, Wilson gave him two tickets to the Monster Truck Rally, and Lina gave him a set of Filipino Christmas ornaments. John and Blythe also sent a gift package that contains a motorcycle mesh jacket/armor (_great for hot summer months_).

After Lina has left, Jake asks Wilson if he can give him a ride to his friend's house. House tells Jake to use one of the cars, but before he can finish his sentence, Cuddy asks House to give the twins their bath. House and Cuddy goes through their nightly routine with the twins (_all abbreviated since it's about three hours pass the twins' normal bedtime_).

As they enter their bedroom, House starts getting frisky with Cuddy and starts demanding his birthday gift.  
Cuddy seductively says "good things come to those who wait" then walks out of their bedroom.  
House thinks to himself "she probably is getting some stuff in the kitchen." He's trying to recall if there were strawberries, chocolate or whip cream in the fridge. But quickly realizes "this is Cuddy we're talking about. I'm sure she has everything prepared." He strips himself naked, slip inside the covers and patiently wait for his rewards. After about five minutes of waiting, House yells "Lise, Mr. Happy is getting impatient."

Cuddy has enlisted the help of both Wilson and Jake in planning House's surprise birthday present. The trio is now in the garage trying to quietly sneak the 'secret contraband' in place.  
Upon hearing House's voice, Wilson asks Cuddy "he name his penis Mr. Happy?"  
Cuddy rolls her eyes and says "you don't want to know."  
Upon making sure that the gifts are in place. She signals for both to be quiet.

Cuddy yells "Greg, can you come over and help me with the garage door. It won't close."  
A buck naked House limps out of the garage and says "Why is it open? I made sure it was closed earlier."  
Both Wilson and Jake immediately turn around at the sight of House in his birthday suit.  
Wilson says "good god House! I guess, Mr. Happy is really happy!"  
"He'll be much happier if you two are not here. What the heck are you two doing in my garage, anyway?"  
Cuddy immediately grabs a piece of towel from the laundry/mud room next door and hands it to House to cover himself up. She replies "I ask them to help me with your birthday present. Surprise!!!"  
And right on cue, both Wilson and Jake unveil Cuddy's gift by pulling the old bed sheet away from the black T100 Triumph Bonneville motorcycle.  
House is literally speechless and gives Cuddy a hug and kiss.  
Both Wilson and Jake yells "wooa, wooa,wooa" as they remind House to keep a grip on his towel.  
House looks at Cuddy's eyes and asks "how did you know?"  
Cuddy replies "your son told me that you've been looking at it online."  
"What else did the little snitch tells you?"  
Cuddy smiles and replies "the exact type of motorcycle jacket (_gift from Emma & Henry_) and helmet (_gift from his parents_) that you like."  
"Does this mean you're not wearing any sexy lingerie for me tonight?"

***

Both father and son drive to work on their respective motorcycles. They walk in the hospital lobby wearing their leather jacket and blue jeans; with their backpacks on one shoulder and their helmets on one hand. It was truly a sight to see, as if Steve McQueen and James Dean have resurrected from the dead. Jake heads straight to the fourth floor to report to his new boss, Dr. Wilson as he begins his internship at the oncology department. House turns right to Cuddy's office. Like always, he barge-in without knocking and demands "what is so damn important that I have to be here at eight-thirty in the morning?"  
"It's eight-forty five. I need you to cover Dr. Riley's lecture."

_**Begin of Excerpt  
**__"Why? What's wrong with him?"  
"Dr. Riley is throwing up; he obviously can't lecture"  
"You witnessed the spew, or you just have his word for it? I think I'm coming down with a little bit of the clap. I may have to go home for a few days."  
Cuddy laughs and replies "Dr. Riley doesn't have a history of lying to me."  
"You said this is the fifth time he's missed a class this year! Either he's dying or he's lying."  
"I'll give you two hours off clinic duty."  
"Fine, I'll have Cameron do it. She loves inspiring the inspired" House starts to walk off.  
"No, you'll do it."  
House turns back and asks "Why is it always have to be me?"  
"Because the world hates you. Or because it's a class on diagnostics. Pick whatever reason feeds your narcissism better."  
"I'm not doing it." House leaves, stops at the door, and walks back in. "You're supposed to stop me and renegotiate."  
"Hmm, and you were supposed to keep on walking. Sorry, I guess we both screwed up. Go on, do it again."  
"I'll do the lecture for four hours off clinic."  
"Two. I know you'd rather spend a couple of hours listening to yourself than listening to patients." Cuddy s__hoos__ House out of her office adding "class starts in ten minutes."_

_As House leaves Cuddy's office into the lobby of the clinic, nurse Brenda stops him.  
"Dr. House, there's a patient…"  
"I'm outta here, take it up with Cuddy."  
A familiar voice calls "Greg"  
House turns around to see his ex-girlfriend "Hi, Stacy."  
"How're you doing?"  
"How am I doing? Well, the last five years have been like… you ever see those 'Girls Gone Wild' videos?"  
"Your life's been like that, or your life's been spent watching them? I have missed you."  
"Is that why you're here?"  
Stacy shakes her head and replies "I need your help." She hands him the films; and House limps over to the clinic desk to take a look.  
"Who am I looking at?"  
"My husband."  
"Who is suffering abdominal pain and fainting spells. No sign of tumors, no vasculitis. Could be indigestion, or maybe a kidney stone? A little one can pack a lot of wallop."  
"Did you think I wasn't going to get married?"  
"Not to someone so poorly endowed. This guy's pancreas is pathetic."  
House begins to walks towards the lecture hall and Stacy follows.  
"There is no kidney stone, no indigestion. Three hospitals, five doctors, not one of them found anything."  
"Well, maybe there's nothing to be found."  
"Right, you suddenly trust doctors, love puppies and long walks in the rain."  
"The walks are out."  
Stacy grabs House's arm and says "I was around you long enough to know when something's not right. Mark's had personality changes; he's acting strange, disconnected…"  
"Interesting. It means there's either a neurological component or he's having an affair."  
"No affair, no nothing! He's sick! I know you're not too busy; you avoid work like the plague. Unless it actually is the plague. I'm asking you a favor."  
"I'm not too busy, but I'm not sure I want him to live. It's good seeing you again."  
__**End of Excerpt**_

_**Next Chapter –**__ we begin a new story arc with you know who :-]__**  
**_

_**Author's Note #3:**__ Please continue clicking the "Review this story/chapter" button at the bottom of this page. Feel free to send me your comments, questions and suggestions. I appreciate all types of feedback, it's the only way I know if you love, hate, or even reading this story ;-)_


	22. Chapter 22

_**Disclaimer:**__ All rights belong to Fox and David Shore.  
__**Author's Note:**__ Special thanks to__** Ceciilee**__, who continues to do an excellent job of editing as well as providing great inputs to improve the overall quality of this story__.  
_

_**Author's Note #2:**__ There are several lines that I took from one of my favorite House episode titled "The Three Stories." No copyright infringement is intended. The lines will be italicized to note that they are from the said episode._

***

House paged Wilson to meet him outside the Lecture Hall during the break.  
Wilson assumes that House will be inquiring about Jake. Instead, his friend tells him about Stacy.  
"Are you going to treat her husband?"  
"There's probably nothing wrong with him."  
_"Oh, sure, that makes sense. She's just using the old 'sick husband' routine as an excuse to get back in touch with you. You think this is easy for her? The only reason she'd be anywhere near you was if she was desperate."  
"So I should help her because she hates me."  
"She doesn't hate you. She loves you; she just can't stand to be around you."_  
The two are interrupted by a med student reminding House that its six minutes pass their break.

Shortly after the class, House has lunch with his son to inquire how his first day of working for Wilson is going.  
"So, how's your first day at the Oncology department?"  
"Its fine, I guess. I'm scheduled to shadow Dr. Brown this week but he has physical therapy this morning so I went to your diagnostic lecture instead."  
"Oh, learn anything?"  
"Yeah. I have several questions though."  
"Fire away."  
"When you first went into the clinic, you said that the doctor thought you were a drug addict. Were you?"  
"Does it matter?"  
"Yes, it means the doctor misdiagnose you from that point on. Question #2: when you came back the second time still having pain and had now developed discolored urine, did they get some blood work?"  
"Yes, why is that relevant?"  
"Shouldn't your blood work have shown you have an elevated Creatine Kinase (CK)?"  
"It should. Instead they misdiagnose the aneurysm in my leg for muscle trauma."  
"Hindsight being 20-20, would you still have opted to reopen your blocked vessel surgically instead of amputation?"  
"Absolutely! I still love my leg."  
"Do you still blame mom and your ex-girlfriend for going behind your back?"  
House looks at his son, shakes his head and replies "not anymore. If I did, I wouldn't have met you, and your mom and I wouldn't have the twins."  
On his way back to his office, he picks up his cell phone and dials a number.  
"Stacy, this is Greg. I've got an opening for ten tomorrow morning. Make sure your husband isn't late."

***

House is signing-in for clinic duties when he sees a delivery man carrying a huge bouquet of flowers towards Cuddy's office. House calls the delivery man and offers to bring in the flower for him. The delivery man looks at his cane and says "thanks, but I think I can handle it."  
House reaches for a twenty from his wallet and hands it to the delivery man.  
The delivery man hands him the flower and says "knock yourself out, mister."  
House looks at the card and reads:

Dear Lisa,

Thank you for taking the time to show me around the hospital. I'm impressed and very interested in hearing more about your proposal. I'll have my assistant make arrangements so we can discuss the specifics.

Regards,  
Bill.

As House brings the flower in Cuddy's office, she looks up and asks "which patient did you stole that from?"  
"No one. So, who's Bill?"  
Cuddy gives House a puzzled look and sarcastically replies (_in her best Valley girl impression_) "My secret boyfriend. We've been having a torrid affair for months now. Oh god, are you going to ask me to break up with him?"  
House place the bouquet on her desk, quietly sits down in the sofa and watch her read the card.  
Cuddy looks at House's sullen face and asks "you're not seriously jealous of me meeting up with a donor, right?"  
"I don't know. Should I?"  
"Hmmm…he's tall, dark, handsome and a billionaire." Realizing that House is still sulking, Cuddy walks over to the sofa, sits next to him and reassures him "he's seriously considering financing Wilson's proposal for an Oncology ward. Don't you think that will be great for the hospital?"  
House nods and retorts "Stacy came to see me today."  
Cuddy immediately felt a sharp pang of jealousy as she asks "what does she wants?"  
"She wants me to diagnose her husband."  
"Oh, she's married. Are you taking her? I mean her husband as a patient?"  
"I told her that I'll see him tomorrow at 10."  
Cuddy stands up and heads back to her desk "Good. I'm sure she'll be happy to hear that."  
"Lise, this Bill guy. What does he do?"  
"He's the CEO/Owner of PSoft technology. Jake says that his software is used in a lot of computer products; Bill was a guest lecturer in one of Jake's class at MIT. He's apparently an MIT dropout that made good."  
"Does he know that you're with me or that we have kids?"  
"No, I don't share the intimate details of my private life to every donor."  
"He's sending you flowers, which mean he's interested in you."  
"And I'm interested in his money to fund the Oncology ward, now we're even. Don't you have clinic duties to do?"  
"Stop deflecting. I want you to tell Bill that you're already in a relationship with a handsome and brilliant doctor."  
"Sure, I'll get right on that just after I finish securing peace in the Middle East."

***

_**The Following Week**_

After missing two appointments, Stacy convinces House to meet her husband (_Mark_) at a restaurant. Mark thinks there's nothing wrong with him and blames his abdominal pain and mood changes on stress. But because House promised Stacy that he'll see him, he drugged Mark in order to take him back to the hospital to check him. House has his team run a huge battery of tests and they all come back normal however, House discovers some subtle neurological abnormalities. House heads straight to Wilson's office, sits on the sofa and starts thumping his cane.  
"So, what's wrong with Mark?"  
"It's not Alzheimer's, it's not encephalitis, it's not environmental, and it's not immunological. Every test is negative, every time."  
"Maybe there's nothing wrong with him."  
"His brain is dying and now he's paralyzed. He can't move his hands or toes."  
"Oh, does your team have any lead?"  
"They're checking him up for Guillain-Barre syndrome."  
"That fits. So, why are you here?"  
"You said that Stacy loves me but she just can't stand to be around me. What's to stop Lisa from feeling the same?"  
"Well, if you hang around more with your ex-girlfriend. Lisa might just do that."  
"Seriously, I'm a middle-aged cripple who's addicted to Vicodin. Why would she want to hang around me?"  
"I don't know House, maybe because she loves you. She's the only woman I know besides Stacy who can tolerate you. Or it could be that you two have three children."  
"What if she just tolerates me because she hasn't found THE ONE? What if she finds a dashing rich guy and realizes that she really can't tolerate me."  
"Are you making up excuses so you can rekindle your relationship with Stacy?"  
"She's married. Big clue I lost that game."  
"Oh my god. The fact that you're thinking about it is scary."  
"That's the difference between you and me. I just think about things, but you'll actually do it."  
"Don't deflect this on me. I'm not the one who is seriously thinking about cheating on the mother of his children with an ex-girlfriend. Who by the way has a sick husband waiting in the hospital."  
"I'm not cheating on Lisa. I'm just curious to know if Stacy still has feelings for me."  
"I'm serious House. Stacy is not worth throwing away your family."

***

A few days after, House realizes that Mark is suffering from subtle delusions when he claims to have spent his honeymoon in Paris (_when they actually went to New York_) and is avoiding sunlight when he switched from mountain biking to yoga. With this information he diagnose Stacy's husband with Acute Intermittent Porphyria (AIP).

later that night, Stacy knocks at House's office and says hi.  
House nods at her.  
"Thank you for fixing him."  
"You're welcome."  
"You were right."  
"He's gonna be fine."  
"No, about me. I'm not over you. You were, you were THE ONE, and you always will be."  
"I know."  
_Stacy sighs aloud "what's so great about you, you always think you're right. What's so frustrating about you is you are right so much of the time. You are brilliant, funny, and surprisingly sexy."_  
House gives Stacy a smug smirk and nods.  
Stacy walks closer, kisses him on the cheek, then leaves.

_**TBC**_

_**Author's Note #3:**__ Happy New Years everyone! _ _Please continue clicking the "Review this story/chapter" button at the bottom of this page. I do appreciate all types of feedback, it's the only way I know if you love, hate, or even reading this story ;-)_


	23. Chapter 23

_**Disclaimer:**__ All rights belong to Fox and David Shore.  
__**Author's Note:**__ Special thanks to my beta __**Ceciilee**__, __I greatly appreciate all your help these past few weeks. I look forward to continue working with you in the coming new year.  
_

_**Author's Note #2:**__ Please continue clicking the "Review this story/chapter" button at the bottom of this page. I do appreciate all types of feedback, it's the only way I know if you love, hate, or even reading this story ;-)_

***

_**The Following Week**_

House is having lunch with his son when Cuddy joins their table.  
"Mind if I join you guys?"  
Jake smiles at his mom and says "it'll be our pleasure, Mom."  
"Well, thank you honey. I'm glad at least there's one gentleman in my presence."  
House rolls his eyes and continues eating his Reuben sandwich.  
"So, how's your rotation in cardiology coming along?"  
Jake looks at his plate and nervously replies "fine."  
"Jacob Gregory House, it's not fine. I just got a call from Carson informing me that you have yet to stay in his office for more than 30 minutes before your father pages you to run his errands."  
"I'm sorry mom. It won't happen again, I'll tell Dr. Carson that I'll make up the hours."  
"Of course it will not happen again because the weeks that you're scheduled to be in diagnostic, you'll be spending in Cardiology."  
House immediately puts down his sandwich and protests"that's not fair. I do consult for Carson so what if I borrow Jake for a while."  
"Borrow for a consult is thirty minutes, maybe an hour or two hours tops. Asking your teenage son to accompany your fellows to break-in on your patient's home is not part of this hospital's internship program."  
"Jake, tell your mom what you've learn in detecting environmental causes of diseases."  
Jake is about to response when his mom glares at him and sternly asks him "are you done with your lunch?"  
Jake nods. Cuddy politely asks him to leave so she can talk to his dad privately.

"Greg, I know you like working with your son. You get a kick out of teaching him stuff but you have to learn to share him with others. Carson was nice enough to agree to mentor Jake for three weeks and he's not doing it because Jake is our son. He's doing because he sees Jake's potential."  
"Carson is boring. He's pedantic and he'll bore Jake to death with how the 'heart is the most important organ in the human body'."  
"Carson maybe boring to you but he's one of the most patient if not the best teacher in this hospital. Jake will learn a lot from him."  
"I still think it's unfair that you're not letting me work with my son."  
"He worked for you last summer. And you think that I don't know that during the weeks that he's suppose to be on rotation in oncology, he was with your team doing god knows what."  
"I didn't have a team last summer; I didn't have real cases to show him. You kept our son from me for 15 years, now you won't even let me spend three weeks with him."  
Ouch! That last statement pierces a dagger in Cuddy's heart. She nods and replies "I'll work something out with Carson and maybe cut his rotation with Nepar to two weeks."  
As Cuddy walks away, Jake comes back to the table. House asks his son "on a scale of one to ten, how guilty does your mother look?"  
Jake turns around and sees his mom slump down with her head down. He replies "about eight."  
House triumphantly informs his son "you're still doing your three weeks rotation in diagnostic this summer."  
"But mom said…"  
House interrupts Jake and says "son, trust me."

***

House is playing his Game Boy when his pager and the pagers of everyone on his team go off.  
A few seconds after, Chase runs in to House's office and says "We're in Code Orange. There's been an accident down in Route 2. A bus filled with children and their chaperons went out of control and flipped on its side. The police estimate that there are about 40 children and 10 adults in the bus. They're taking all the victims here and to Princeton General.  
House tells his staff "Go. There should be enough of you guys to cover the ER."  
Chase replies "Cuddy specifically asks for you."  
"Why?"  
"The bus trip was sponsored by the UN. Only a handful of the kids can speak English."  
"She needs an interpreter not me."

The ER is a zoo and there are more patients than beds. The good news is most of the children don't appear to have major injuries but each of them still need to be look at. Cuddy creates a triage where patients are interviewed by one of the staff that can understand their language and translates their symptoms and hands them to a doctor to diagnose. There were 2 nurses that are fluent in Spanish, 1 med-tech who's fluent in Chinese, 1 resident who's fluent in Swahili and everyone else is sent to House.  
House tells Cameron to call Jake.  
Cuddy interrupts "no, you're not going to 'borrow' him again from Carson."  
"I need help. I can't go through all of these patients by myself."  
"You have three qualified doctors beside you, use them."  
"Yeah, none of them speak any language besides English. How does that help me?"  
Cuddy grudgingly agreed to call Jake down to help out in the ER.

House and Jake go through the lines of kids in a jiffy. Wilson stands in amazement as both father and son speaks about ten languages between them. He leans over to Cuddy and says "I once read that a man who knew four languages is worth four men. I now understand what that statement means."

***

As House is signing out from his clinic duties, he takes a quick peek through the glass panel at Cuddy's office. He can't help but smile as he sees her seriously going through paperwork, however the smile turns into a frown after he notices another bouquet of flower. He thinks to himself "that son of a bitch sent another bouquet." So, he decides to hang around the clinic until Cuddy leaves her office. House nonchalantly enters Cuddy's office and checks out the card that came with the flowers.

Dear Lisa,

Thanks for sending me the proposal. I can't wait to personally go through them with you.

I'll see you then,  
Bill

House goes through Cuddy's online calendar to try to figure out when she's meeting with this mysterious billionaire Bill. He doesn't find anything online so he searches her day planner and finds a note on her schedule for this afternoon that says "Lunch with Bill at Zai."  
Zai is a restaurant located in downtown Princeton. He looks at his watch and sees that it's 11:30; he immediately limps to the daycare center. House informs the head caregiver that he's taking his kids out for lunch. She nods and asks him to sign them out. House places the twins in their strollers and takes them out to the parking lot. Cuddy has used the Lexus for her lunch date so he buckles up the kids in the minivan. He parks the minivan and takes the boys inside Zai restaurant. He spots Cuddy having lunch with a young bespectacled man and approaches them.  
"Oh my god! I didn't even know you were here."  
Cuddy is utterly shock and asks "what are you doing here?"  
"I got hungry and I just thought I bring **our** kids to lunch." House looks over to the man she's having lunch with and introduces himself "I'm Dr. Greg House." He points to the baby in the stroller and says "this is **our** son Charlie" he points to the baby in his arms and says "this one is Ethan. They're **our** kids and we have another one, Jake who is seventeen. Did I mention that they're all **our** kids? I mean, Lisa and I."  
Cuddy tries very hard to suppress her laughter. She finds it both infuriating and endearing to see House make a fool of himself.  
The overwhelmed young man says "yes, you've mentioned that they're all your kids. I'm Bill Wilcox; I'm with Barrington Medical Supplies. We service all of PPTH's medical equipments. It's nice to finally meet you Dr. House, I've heard so much about you. Your name does come up quite frequently when we're servicing the MRI."  
Cuddy immediately excuses herself from poor Mr. Wilcox and gently pulls House away from the table. "I cannot believe that you will stoop down to taking our kids from daycare just to spy on me."  
"Why are you meeting a supply rep 20 minutes away from the hospital?"  
"Because I have my dentist appointment next door in half hour and it's much more convenient to meet him here."  
"Well, you'll need to make that clear in your calendar schedule."  
"Sure. Why don't I just enter all my appointments in your calendar so you can see my hourly activities?"  
"That won't be necessary. I'm just interested in the important ones."

***

_**The Next Day**_

House has just arrived at work and is about to enter the elevator when Cuddy grabs his arms.  
"I want to run something by you."  
House replies loudly for the entire lobby to hear "I will not have sex with you in the elevator! Not again! It's hard on my leg, that first time. All that desperate, administrative need…"  
Cuddy interrupts House's rant "Stacy's husband is going to need close monitoring at the hospital. And since we can definitely use her back here, I've offered her a job as General Counsel."  
"Did she say yes?"  
"She said only if it was okay with you. Yes or no?"  
"Fine."  
Cuddy nods and slips him a piece of paper.  
"What's this?"  
"The name of the restaurant and time of my dinner meeting with Bill. I thought I'd save you the trip of snooping around my office."  
As House enters the elevator, Cuddy holds the door for a second and grinningly adds "I got Lina to babysit that night so you're welcome to spy on us too."

_**TBC **_

_**Author's Note #3: **__Sorry, there will probably be **NO** updates for a few days (unless, my beta becomes available). Anyway, I want to wish everyone a very happy and prosperous new year!_


	24. Chapter 24

_**Disclaimer:**__ All rights belong to Fox and David Shore.  
__**Author's Note:**__ This chapter is especially dedicated to my beta __**Ceciilee**__. Who in spite of being under the weather, took time to edit this chapter so everyone can have their daily dose of Huddy ;-)_

***

Wilson yells at House "Have you gone insane? Lisa is going to kill you when she finds out."  
"Find out what? That I've agreed to meet Stacy and her husband over dinner."  
"No, you want to have dinner with Stacy in the same restaurant where Lisa is having dinner with Bill so you can make Lisa jealous."  
"Lise shouldn't be having dinner with him."  
"No, you shouldn't be having dinner with your ex girlfriend. Especially, when you just saved her husband, and she just admitted that she's not over you."  
"Her husband was sick, she just felt nostalgic with what we used to have. It doesn't mean anything. Besides, if Lise is so worried about Stacy she shouldn't have hired her in the first place."  
"I thought you told her that it's fine by you."  
"Of course, I said its fine. What was I suppose to say? No don't hire her in the off chance that I might still have feelings for her."  
"Did you tell Stacy about you and Lisa and the kids?"  
"No, it never came up."  
"And you get mad when Lisa doesn't tell a complete stranger about that same fact."  
"What's your point?"  
"The point is. You're doing this to get back at Lisa for having dinner with a donor and for hiring Stacy back."  
"So what if I am? Stacy wants to take me out to dinner. Lina is babysitting the twins. I'm free, she's free, we're all free to have dinner."  
"What if Stacy wants more than dinner?"  
"I'll make room for dessert then."  
"You know exactly what I mean."  
"Okay, I'll say no to dessert."  
"You took her husband's case because you were curious if she still has feelings for you and you got your answer. What now? What if you find out that you still have feelings for her? Are you willing to give up everything you have with Lisa and the kids at the off chance that Stacy is still THE ONE?"  
House looks at Wilson intently and replies "Don't be ridiculous. I'm having dinner with her, I'm not marrying her!"  
"You're playing with fire House. If you're not careful, you'll not only get burn but you might lose a hand too."  
"Huh? Leave the metaphors to me."  
"I'm serious; Stacy is not worth losing Lisa and the kids."

***

House plays with his silverware while he and Stacy wait for their food. House knew that Stacy would not bring Mark because she made her intention clear that "he was THE ONE for her and will always be."  
As House's eyes rove around in search of Cuddy and billionaire Bill, Stacy asks him "how have you been these past five years?"  
"Except for the constant pain in my leg, everything is peachy."  
"You must really like working in Princeton. It's been what… six years? That's the longest that you've been in one place."  
House nods to acknowledge the fact that it is indeed the longest stint he has in a hospital and adds "I can't complain, Lis…Cuddy hasn't fired me yet."  
"I just want to thank you for diagnosing Mark."  
"No problem. With therapy, he'll be fine."  
"I don't know if Mark and I will ever be fine again."  
Before House can reply, he spots Cuddy and billionaire Bill entering the restaurant. Bill is exactly how Cuddy described him: tall, dark, and handsome. He has an old Hollywood leading man aura around him, he actually reminds House of Cary Grant. House's chest begins to tighten at the thought of Cuddy choosing Bill over him. Bill is not only rich and handsome, but he looks healthy and fit.  
House never considered himself handsome but has always know he has his own unique charm. He's not rich but he can provide a comfortable living for his family. He has a Vicodin-dependency issue but he's working on it.

When Cuddy walks pass their table, House grabs her hands and says "hey." Cuddy turns around to see House with Stacy. Cuddy says "hi" to Stacy and looks over to House and raises her brow at him. Cuddy introduces her date "this is Bill Marksley, CEO-Owner of PSoft Technologies and soon to be benefactor of PPTH's new oncology ward."  
She looks at Bill and introduces the duo "this is Stacy Warner, she's one of our hospital's legal counsels. And this is Dr. Greg House; he's the head of our Diagnostic Department."  
Bill offers his hand to both and jokes "oh dear, we just need the head of Oncology present and we'll have a quorum."  
House, who quickly spotted Bill's hand on Cuddy's back, blurts out "so, how are your kids Dr. Cuddy?"  
Cuddy smiles as she can see where House is heading, replies "very good Dr. House. Good babysitters are worth their weight in gold." She looks over at Stacy and asks "How about you? Don't tell me you already have a lawsuit for the new counsel to work on?"  
Stacy replies "No, I just wanted to treat House to dinner and thank him for saving Mark's life. We also have quite a bit of catching up to do." Cuddy forces a smile and Bill signals for the maitre'd to show them their table.  
After Cuddy and Bill leaves, Stacy asks "I didn't know that Cuddy has kids."  
But before House could reply, the waiter brings in their orders.

The food is good and the conversation is relaxed. It's almost like what they used to share; only times are different now. He's no longer nursing a broken heart; in fact he's now back with THE ONE he truly loved. When he first met Stacy, she had qualities that reminded him of Cuddy. She was smart, witty, and beautiful; she was also strong willed and she tolerated his moody side better than all the other women with whom he had tried to forget Cuddy. It took him seven years to get over Cuddy and he was truly convinced that he had moved on to Stacy. But that one night in Baltimore stirred up all these emotions in him and made him realized that he had never moved on because Cuddy was not only THE ONE he wanted but also THE ONE he needed. Cuddy was and will always be THE ONE for him and, now, even sitting across from Stacy his entire attention was on Cuddy and Bill. He knows that what he's feeling at seeing her with another man is called- fear. The fear of losing her to Bill or anyone else shakes him to the core. He doesn't want to lose Lisa again. Losing would be like losing the ability to breath."

House excuses himself and heads straight to Cuddy's and Bill's table.  
House interrupts their conversation by asking "can I borrow her for a minute?"  
Bill looks at Cuddy, and she gives Bill an apologetic look.  
Cuddy promises "this shouldn't take long."  
House pulls Cuddy to the side and asks "why are you wearing that dress?"  
Cuddy rolls her eyes and replies "because it's a fancy restaurant and a little black dress is always the safe way to go. Did you just pull me out of a business dinner to inquire about my wardrobe?"  
"No." House stutters for a while and adds "you only wear that dress for me."  
Cuddy smiles at House "I'm wearing it for you. I knew you would be here, I gave you the time and place, remember? What's really bugging you, Greg?"  
"You. You having dinner with billionaire Bill."  
"Well, look whose talking. Is it just my imagination or did I just saw you having dinner with your married ex girlfriend?"  
"I didn't want to eat alone and she wanted to take me out to dinner. So, everything just worked out perfectly."  
"Okay, if you don't mind I would like to go back to my business dinner now."  
"I do mind. I don't want you to go back."  
Cuddy is now losing her patience and says "well, you can't always get what you want."

House comes back to his table very angry at how Cuddy has just dismissed him.  
So when Stacy asks "do you have room for desserts?"  
He replies "Of course."

_**TBC**_

_**Author's Note #2:**__ Please continue clicking the "Review this story/chapter" button at the bottom of this page. I do appreciate all types of feedback, it's the only way I know if you love, hate, or even reading this story ;-)_


	25. Chapter 25

_**Disclaimer:**__ All rights belong to Fox and David Shore.  
__**Author's Note:**__ This chapter is especially dedicated to my beta __**Ceciilee**__. Who in spite of being under the weather, took time to edit this chapter so everyone can have their daily dose of Huddy ;-)_

***

After dessert, Stacy heads over to the ladies room while House waits in the lobby.  
House is still fuming at the brush off that he received from Cuddy. And he soothes his bruised ego by admiring Stacy's sexy legs from afar. He's seriously considering throwing everything away just to prove to Cuddy that he still has it, and then his phone rings.  
"Dad, this is Jake."  
"Hey, what's up son?"  
"Are you at work?"  
"No, why?"  
"Mom has an important dinner tonight and Lina's babysitting the twins."  
"Yeah, I know that. What's wrong?"  
"Lina's landlord just called and one of the waterlines erupted in her apartment complex. Lina needs to go home to check the damage to her apartment."  
"Okay, don't worry. I'm on my way home."

When Stacy returns, House thanks her for the dinner and offers to walk her to the car.  
When they reach her car she says "this is it. This is my car."  
House replies "okay, thanks again for dinner. The food was really good."  
As House is about to turn around, Stacy pulls him back and kisses him on the lips.  
House is surprise by Stacy's bold move and within a split second he thinks of kissing her back. But the image of Lisa and kids crosses his mind and he feels the pit of his stomach churn and immediately pulls away. "I can't. I'm sorry Stacy. I need to be home with my family."  
Stacy feels a wave of shock hits her and asks "what do you mean by family?"  
"Lise and I have three kids. If you don't mind, I really need to go home to our kids before the babysitter charge us double for overtime."  
All Stacy can do is nod. After a few minutes of getting her footing back, she asks herself "he has three kids? And who is Liz?"

Meanwhile, Cuddy is within her element discussing the minutia of the planned new oncology/hematology ward. She tells Bill that with his donation, the hospital will be able to provide care for double the amount of patients. The new ward will have 36 inpatient beds, a radiotherapy department and a chemotherapy unit. She adds that the chemotherapy unit will provide specialist treatment, care, advice and support for patients (_and their families_) undergoing outpatient chemotherapy. Bill, whose own son died of leukemia wants to know if half of the ward can be devoted exclusively for children.  
"You mean, a pediatric oncology ward?"  
"Yes, can we have that? My son Luke spent a lot of time in the hospital when he was undergoing chemo and it would have been nice if there was a place he can hangout with kids like him."  
Cuddy nods and replies "Of course. We can definitely modify the plan to accommodate that."  
Cuddy opens her bag to pull her little notepad when she notices her phone vibrating.  
She picks it up and sees that she has six messages on her inbox.  
She looks through all her messages  
1st- a text message that says "we love you, Mommy,"  
2nd- a picture of Ethan smiling,  
3rd- a picture of Charlie smiling,  
4th- a picture of Jake smiling,  
5th- an off centered picture of House and the boys.  
Finally, another text message that says "Please, come home soon Mommy."  
Cuddy can't help but smile at her boys.  
Bill notices that she was reading her text messages and asks "is everything alright?"  
Cuddy nods and replies "yup, my boys are just taking advantage of our unlimited text plan."

Bill smiles and asks "oh yeah, the other doctor mentioned them earlier. How many kids do you have, if you don't mind me asking?"  
"I don't mind at all. My three sons are my pride and joy. My eldest son, Jake is seventeen. My twin boys, Ethan and Charlie are seven months old."  
"That's really great that you are able to juggle them and the hospital."  
"Yes, I love it. When the hospital gets overwhelming, I go home to my kids and vice versa."  
"I love kids too. I wish my son Luke is still with me. I wish I had more kids."  
"Luke's mom? Is she...?"  
Bill shakes his head and replies "she passed away soon after Luke. The doctors said that she died of meningitis, but I know better. I believe she died of a broken heart. She took Luke's death really hard. We both did. I just happened to have my work to keep me occupied."  
"I'm so sorry."

Bill immediately changes the topic "enough about me. How about you?"  
"What about me?"  
"I noticed that you don't have a ring on your finger. Am I correct in assuming that the boys' father is out of the picture?"  
"Oh, he's in the picture. He's just not the marrying type."  
"No offense to the father of your children but is he insane?"  
Cuddy laugh and replies "there's not a week that goes by that I don't question his sanity; which doesn't say much about mine for putting up with him all these years."  
"You're beautiful, smart, confident and sexy. I'm just astounded that he hasn't formally laid a claim on you. I know I would."  
Cuddy is taken aback by Bill's upfrontness but flattered at the same time. She simply smiles and quickly stirs the conversation back to the oncology ward. Her thoughts are interrupted by the sight of her bag vibrating on the table.  
"I'm sorry, let me get this. I just want to make sure that the boys haven't burn down the house yet."  
Cuddy grabs her purse and briskly walks to the waiting area (_in the ladies room_).

House is yelling over loud noises in the background asking "Lise? Are you there?"  
"Greg, what's wrong? Where are you? What's that sound?"  
"We're trying to let the twins sleep. Do you think the twins' car seat can fit in my motorcycles?"  
"No! Do not put the twins in your motorcycle. Greg, do you hear me? "  
The phone intermittently cuts off and then she hears House said "yeah, Mom said it's fine."  
Now, Cuddy is yelling at the phone "House! I didn't say yes. House! If I you put the kids in your motorcycle, I'm gonna…"  
All of a sudden, House's voice is now crystal clear asking her "So, why are you yelling?"  
"I'm sorry, I couldn't hear over whatever noise you were on earlier. Did you hear me when I said don't put the twins in your motorcycle?"  
"Uh huh. Where are you?"  
"You know where I am. I'm at the restaurant."  
"I mean, where in the restaurant are you?"  
"I'm in the ladies room. Why does it matter?"  
"Because Bob here is waiting. Actually, we're all waiting for you to come back to the table."  
"We? Who's we? And who's Bob? Do you mean Bill?" Cuddy immediately walks out of the ladies room; she looks over to where her table is and sees House seated on her chair.  
House places the carrier (_with a sleeping Ethan inside_) on the floor and address Bill "So Bob, did you enjoy your dinner?"  
"Yes, actually I was enjoying it..." Bill is distracted by a young man holding another baby carrier that pulls a chair from another table and move it closer to his table.  
The young man introduces himself "Hi, I'm Jake House. I like your tie."  
"Thanks."  
House asks Bill if the plate was Cuddy's dessert and when he said yes, House starts eating it.  
Cuddy walks in and asks the duo "what are you two doing here?"  
They look at each other and begin answering at the same time.  
Cuddy holds her hand up to make them stop. "I don't mean for you two to answer at the same time."  
She points at House signaling for him to start explaining and he says "the twins wouldn't stop crying" he looks over to Bill and explains "they're teething."  
Jake adds "we tried everything, Mom. We turned up the volume of the TV really loud, turned on the vacuum cleaner, we put their binkies in the freezer, and we even put them on top of the washing machine. After all that, we just decided to drive them around the block." He looks down at the carrier and adds "that seemed to work."  
Cuddy looks at Bill and starts apologizing, but Bill seem very amuse by her family.  
Bill reassures her "Oh, don't apologize. I totally understand. I used to drive my son around the block too just to get him to stop crying."  
Cuddy thanks Bill and says "I will modify the proposal to include all the changes you've requested. Again, thanks for a wonderful dinner."  
"It was all my pleasure. Glad to meet your family." He nods at the two men and address them "Dr. House, Jake—good meeting you gentlemen."  
Cuddy says goodbye, takes one of the carriers and heads out to the lobby. Jake, who has the other baby, follows her closely. They are already by the lobby when she turns around notices that House is not with them. She looks back to where she came from and sees House still sitting on the table eating her dessert and chatting with Bill. All she can do is sigh out loud.

_**TBC**_

_**Author's Note #2:**__ Please continue clicking the "Review this story/chapter" button at the bottom of this page. I do appreciate all types of feedback, it's the only way I know if you love, hate, or even reading this story ;-)_


	26. Chapter 26

**_Disclaimer:_**_ All rights belong to Fox and David Shore.  
**Author's Notes:** Special thanks to my beta **Ceciilee,** for continuing to do such an awesome job editing this fic. I will be lost without your help._

_I also want to give a big shout-out to all my loyal readers who have left 240+ re__views for this sequel story alone. That is simply spectacular and you guys are awesome! I truly, truly appreciate your support, encouragements, and most of all your comments (pros and cons). Those of you who leave reviews know how I value your opinion that's why I answer each and every one of your PMs. __ For those of you who've set up your story alerts, thank you for reading. Please delurk sometime and let me know what you think ;-)  
_

***

_**The following week  
**_Cuddy is busy reviewing budget requests from all department heads, when she hears a knock on her door. She looks up to see that it's Stacy and signals for her to come in.  
"Hi Stacy, what can I do for you?"  
"I just wanted to thank you again for giving me the job."  
"Not a problem. You're available, and the legal department is short staffed. Seems like a perfect match to me."  
After her dinner with House, Stacy asked around and heard stories that House is the father of Cuddy's children. So, Stacy wants to verify the information and hesitantly asks Cuddy "is it true that you and Greg are… together?"  
"Yes, we are" Cuddy flips a picture frame from her desk to show Stacy the Cuddy-House family photo.

Stacy looks at the picture and feels green with envy. Envious that Cuddy has something that she has always wanted: a child.  
When she and Greg were together, he had made it clear to her in no uncertain terms that a kid was out of the question. And now, he has three boys with Cuddy.  
Stacy asks "your eldest boy, how old is he?"  
Cuddy replies "Jake is seventeen. He's currently doing his internship with Dr. Carson, up in cardiology."  
Stacy nods and absently comments "he looks very much like Greg. Did you have him back in college?"  
Cuddy says "yes, I had Jake shortly after my junior year of pre-med."  
"Did Greg know about it?"  
"No, he never knew about Jake until a couple of years ago."  
Stacey offers her insight "I always knew that there was something going on between the two of you. I just didn't really want to face it. I convinced myself that I was wrong and everything was in my head."  
"What do you mean? Greg and I never got back together until after the infraction, after you two split-up."  
"No, I don't mean that. There's just something about being near you that makes him happy. A few years into our relationship, he came back from a conference and all he could talk about was Cuddy this and Cuddy that. He didn't have friends so I was jealous with this Cuddy guy that he talked about so much about. Sorry, I just assume that Cuddy was a guy."  
"It's okay. I did bump into him in Baltimore in '99." Cuddy thinks to herself "that son of a bitch cheated on Stacy with me."  
"Wow! You even remember the year?"  
"Yes, Jake was ten at that time and I thought about telling Greg about our son."  
Stacy nods and adds "you should see the look on his face when you called to offer him this job. He practically told me 'I'm leaving whether you're coming or not'."  
"I'm sorry, I have no idea."  
"I won't lie to you, he was THE ONE for me but it was a constant uphill climb. He's been building forts around him for years and I had been tearing them down brick by brick since day one. And one day I just realized that a relationship shouldn't be this difficult. I just got tired of being on the outside looking in; I felt that there was no room for me in his life."  
"I'm sure it was the infraction that made him shut you out."  
"No, he began shutting all the doors to his fort even before the infraction. Come to think of it, it was around when he came back from that Baltimore conference. The infraction was just the last straw for me, by then he had already begun pushing me away like he no longer needed me in his life. I hope you'll have better luck than I did."  
"Thanks Stacy. I like to think that he has made room for me and the kids in his castle, but only time will tell."

***

That afternoon, Cuddy sees House pushing the stroller out to the campus quad. There's nothing really odd about that however, the absence of Wilson makes Cuddy suspicious. She decides to follow him to find out what he is up to. House and kids enters the Woolworth Music Center and proceed to the second floor. They turn left onto a hallway and enter room 231. Cuddy tries to see what's inside when a couple of mothers with their babies walk-in. Cuddy asks one of the ladies "what's inside?"  
The lady replies "its Mommy (_or Daddy_) and me music class. It's like the Kindermusic or Gymboree classes, only this one is run by Dr. Bergman. She's one of the music professors here and she teaches babies about melody, pitch and rhythm. She's great; you should come and join us. I know one of the daddies has twins, he could use an extra hand."  
Cuddy is simply dumbstruck. She thinks to herself "this is the reason why I love Greg. He just never ceases to amaze me with his unpredictability."  
Cuddy walks inside the room and sees House and the twins. She thinks about remaining on the sideline but decides against it. As she's approaching them, Charlie quickly spots her and starts giggling with excitement. House turns around and smiles at her.  
House asks "are you joining us this afternoon?"  
"Hmmm…I'm not exactly dress to sit on the floor."  
House wiggles his brows and whispers "You're welcome to sit on my lap anytime."  
Cuddy simply rolls her eyes and gently pecks his cheeks.

***

_**About two weeks later**_  
House is reading a memorandum on his computer, which alone catches Cameron's attention. She suspiciously comes closer to verify and House notices Cameron's low cut shirt and says "so, the wombat isn't satisfying you enough?"  
"He's doing great, why?"  
"You know, dressing up like Cuddy and flaunting your tatas in front of me ain't gonna work."  
Cameron immediately closes her lab coat and says "I wasn't flaunting it; I was just looking at your computer screen."  
Noting that Cameron is still inches away from him "Seriously, I got 24-7 access to the original thing. I don't need knockoffs."  
Cameron ignores House comment and asks "you're reading through Cuddy's personal memos?"  
House sarcastically replies "Yes, I am Dr. Cameron thanks for stating the obvious."  
"You never read her memos, unless they're not meant for you. Oh my god! You hacked into Cuddy's computer."  
House grins and replies "what's the use of having a genius son, if he can't help daddy bring mommy closer?"  
"You asked Jake to hack into his mother's computer?"  
"No, I ask him to give me remote access to his mother's computer. The kid gets way too nervous when daddy brings him along for hunting expedition down in his mommy's office. This way, I can skim through the Dean's daily itineraries in the convenience of my desk. Am I brilliant or what?"  
"That's just wrong. What kind of dad uses his own kid to spy on his mom?"  
"Just for saying that, you're doing my clinic hours today. And if Cuddy finds out, you'll be doing my clinic duties for as long as you work for me."

Shortly after, House barges into Cuddy's office and demands "I want the death row guy case."  
"How do you even know about him? You don't have access to the hospital's mainframe."  
"No, but 'partypants' does."  
"You stole my password?"  
"Hardly counts as stealing, it was in plain view."  
Cuddy looks at her rolodex and glares at House. "Well, I have already assigned death row guy to Dr. Carson."  
"Carson? Isn't he working on the Prez wannabe case?"  
"Yes, he's working on Senator Kelley's case."  
"Shouldn't he be concentrating on one high profile case? The press will be all over him once the word gets out that the wannabe Prez checked in for a non-routine visit to the hospital."  
Cuddy resigns herself to the fact that House is absolutely right. She hesitantly agrees to give House the death row guy's case.  
"Oh, and I want Jake to work with me on this case."  
"Absolutely not! Its Jake's last week with Carson and the patient is too dangerous. He's on death row because he killed several people."  
"Come on, it'll be great for Jake. A guy's heart starts beating so fast it pumps out air instead of blood. How cool is that?"  
Cuddy cautiously agrees on one condition "he remains on-site. You or your staff cannot bring him to any prison excursion."  
House smile and says "It's a pleasure doing business with you, mistress."

_**TBC**_

_**The Next Chapter **- It's been a while since I did a medical arc, so next chapter will be my take on the death row guy episode (a.k.a. Acceptance)._


	27. Chapter 27

_**Disclaimer:**__ All rights belong to Fox and David Shore.  
__**Author's Notes:**__ Special thanks to my beta __**Ceciilee,**__ for continuing to do such an awesome job editing this fic._

***

House visits the death row guy at Mercer State Prison and deduces from the bluish tinge in his fingernails and lips that he's hypoxic. He tells the warden that the patient's breathing is bad enough to require intubation and respirator. When the warden informs him that the prison doesn't own a respirator, House admits the death row guy to the hospital. But not without lying to Stacy about receiving Cuddy's approval to transfer the death row guy from maximum prison to the hospital. Shortly after Stacy successfully gets a court order to transfer the death row guy, a fuming Cuddy hunts House down demanding an explanation as to why a simple consult has resulted in an entire floor of her hospital's being shut down. When it becomes apparent to Stacy that Cuddy never approved of the transfer request, she is distraught. Meanwhile, Cuddy tells House to return the patient to prison but he informs her that he can't. Apparently, the court order that Stacy acquired for the hospital requires that they cure the patient before shipping him back to prison.

Foreman asks "where's Cameron?"  
Chase replies "she's doing House's clinic hours today."  
House interrupts "don't worry, I brought reinforcement" and gently nudges his son to join the team on the table. "He's not as pretty as Cameron, but at least he won't convince us to share our feelings with each other."  
Foreman smiles at Jake and Chase slaps him on the back.  
House, Foreman, Chase and Jake go through DDx and initially diagnose the patient of suffering from a drug overdose. However, the tests all come back negative for drugs. When one of the tests shows a widened anion gap in the patient's blood, they concluded that it might be INH (isoniazid) poisoning. House orders Chase to look for the patient's secret stash in his prison cell and tells Foreman to check on the patient's condition. When Jake volunteers to accompany Chase, House orders him to stay put.  
Chase asks "why can't he come?"  
House replies "You've got a prettier mouth. Better chance the inmates will open up to you alone."  
Chase rolls his eyes and Jake gives his dad a puzzled look.  
House is about to enter his office when he spots Stacy waiting for him. House signals for his son to stand up and exit out using the other door to avoid Stacy.  
House isn't successful, as both he and Jake walk straight into a very furious Stacy.  
Stacy does a quick double take on father and son, but swiftly regroups and confronts House "Are you trying to get me fired?"  
Jake, who is in between the two, slowly slips to the side.  
House replies "No, I just don't want you working right here, in my office. But anywhere else in the building is fine. It's a big hospital."  
"Cuddy just reamed me."  
"I hope that one means what I think it means."  
House's statement illicit a snigger from his son; for some unknown reason (_even to him_) House is conscious that his son doesn't get any wrong idea about his feelings for Stacy.  
Stacy continues "For trusting you! She figured when she hired me she'd at least have someone you couldn't walk all over. I need to know, can I trust you?"  
House honestly replies "If I hadn't lied to you about Cuddy's approval, my patient would be dead."  
"Great. Now I know. Now we can work together," then Stacy leaves.  
House looks at his son and says "lesson #6792 do not ever work with your current and your ex. It's hard enough with one; it's a bitch with both."  
Jake simply shrugs his shoulder and continues walking with his dad.

"Where are we going, Dad?"  
"Hmmm…good question. I guess, we could get the twins."  
Jake shakes his head and says "I'm not going with you to 'daddy and me class'."  
"Why not? There'll be some hot chicks in there."  
"Yeah, and all of them have kids."  
"What do you have against women with kids?"  
Jake is now sweating bullets and begs "nothing. Come on dad, please."  
"Oh relax, it's Tuesday. Daddy and me classes are on Thursdays."  
Jake breathes a sigh of relief.  
House looks at his watch and announces "its noon. Go find Wilson and ask him to buy me a Reuben, some fries, and a coke. I'll go get the twins and we'll meet you both out in the quad."

House, Wilson, Jake and the twins are out on the campus quad. The big boys are eating their sandwiches, while the little ones are busy honing their social skills with the co-ed ladies.  
Wilson asks House "heard about the stunt you pulled to get the death row guy out of prison, so are Lisa and Stacy still speaking to you?"  
"Nothing that can't be fix after I save the death row guy."  
"Has your team figured out what's killing your patient."  
"We think it might be INH poisoning. INH is often used to treats tuberculosis and TB is common in prison. "  
"You think the patient OD'ed on it?"  
"Chase is checking on the patient's prison cell to confirm how and if he has access to INH."

After lunch, Jake returns the twins back to the daycare while House speaks to Chase on his cell phone. Chase gives him a description of the storage cell that the patient was held when he got sick. Afterwards, House tells Chase to hold off the search and come back to the hospital.  
Jake asks "did he find anything?"  
"I think so. The patient was held in a storage cell where he has access to bottles of copier toner." House deduces that the patient has tried to kill himself with an overdose of copier fluid, which is 90% methanol.

House tells his son to go back to his office and when Jake protests, House asks him "do you want me to get in big trouble? Not with the Dean, but with your mother?"  
"Of course not, will you at least tell me what the solution is?"  
"Ethanol (_alcohol_) is the cure for methanol poisoning. It acts as a competitive inhibitor that blocks the conversion of methanol to its toxic products."  
Jake nods and asks his dad "so you're going to get him drunk?"  
House smiles at his son and nods.  
"I'll come back in about an hour and check up on you."  
"Make it two. He's a big guy, might take awhile."

Shortly after, House wheels a cart to the death row guy's room and closes the blinds. He takes out two sample jars and a full bottle of Bacardi 151. He informs the patient that he's dying and tells him that he deserves a 'last drink'. The two finish the bottle and in process House saves his patient from methanol poisoning. Jake comes back after two hours and finds a deeply inebriated House passed out in the patient's room. He finds a wheel chair, sneaks his father out to the parking lot and places him in the car. Jake gets his father home safely but can't save him from the wrath of his mother. Cuddy is so mad that she sleeps in the twins' room because she can't stand to be in bed next to a very drunk House. The following morning, she gives House the silent treatment, which suits him perfectly given his hung-over state.

Upon arrival at the hospital, House bumps into Stacy and she inquires if he's sending the death row guy back to prison today.  
He is about to say yes but changes his mind and asks Stacy "Can I trust you?"  
Stacy replies "You used to."  
House reveals that he suspects that the patient is still sick and he plans to keep him longer. He informs Stacy that "either you can do your job and keep the hospital informed, or you can help me make sure the hospital is not informed and buy me some time."

An hour or so later, Cuddy puts a moratorium on her silent treatment of House and confronts him as to why he hasn't sent the patient back to prison yet. House quickly deduce and confirms that Stacy has 'ratted him out' to Cuddy. He thinks to himself, "The two have made an unholy alliance against me. I'll need to put an end to this quickly or else I'll never be able to get away with anything."

When Cuddy tries to discharge the death row guy against House's recommendation, the patient develops a bleeding problem. He undergoes an emergency surgery where they remove about a foot of necrotic bowel from him. Finally, House realizes that death row guy has pheochromocytoma (_a tumor that releases high levels of adrenalin_), and this is to blame for his symptoms (_rage, necrotic bowel, and super-human strength)_. Foreman, Chase and Jake prove House's diagnosis by finding the tumor using the MRI.

House shoves a few journals and books to his backpack and says goodbye to him team.  
Chase asks "Where are you going?"  
"I'm going home. I've solved the case."  
Foreman asks "it's only 4PM, that's early even for you."  
"I gotta wash my hair or shave my legs. Pick whichever excuse pleases you. I'm still going home."  
Chase gives Jake a 'do something' look.  
Jake stands, approaches his dad and asks "the patient is still in surgery, shouldn't you wait for the results?"  
"Son, this world that we live in is like an ant colony. Everyone has been conscripted to do a job. My job is to diagnose the problem, which I've done. The surgeon's job is to remove the tumor that I've identified, which he is doing. And your mom's job is to discharge the patient, which she'll do in a day or two. And the patient, he'll be sent back to prison where ironically he'll most likely be executed by the state of New Jersey." House pats his son on the shoulder and adds "if you'll excuse me, I have a dinner to prepare to woo back my queen ant."

_**TBC**_

_**Author's Note #2:**__ Please continue clicking the "Review this story/chapter" button at the bottom of this page. I do appreciate all types of feedback, it's the only way I know if you love, hate, or even reading this story ;-)_


	28. Chapter 28

_**Disclaimer:**__ All rights belong to Fox and David Shore.  
__**Author's Notes:**__ Special thanks to my beta __**Ceciilee,**__ for continuing to do such an awesome job editing this fic._

***

House limps to Wilson's office and asks "do you have plans for tonight?"  
"No, why?"  
"Do you mind babysitting my kids? Jake can help you with the twins."  
"Why? What did you do to Lisa?"  
"Nothing. Can a man do something nice for his woman?"  
"Other men, maybe. But you, no. You don't do grand gestures. Oh god, did you cheat on Lisa?"  
"Of course not! I may have broken a few hospital rules with regards to the death row guy case so; I just want to make it up to Lise."  
Wilson nods in understanding "ok, but I don't have a crib in my apartment. Where will the twins sleep?"  
"You have a chest drawers, right?"  
"Yeah."  
"They should fit-in there."  
Wilson has a stun look on his face and asks "seriously?"  
"No, you idiot! I'll bring in their port-a-crib. They both can share in the crib and Jake can sleep on your guest bed."  
"Oh, okay."

By the time House, Jake and the twins arrive home; Lina has already prepared all the twins' stuff; the port-a-crib, the clothes, diapers, wipes, baby food, milk formula, binkies and their bedtime story books.  
House sees all the twins' stuff and mumbles "how can two tiny babies need all these much stuff?"  
He proceeded to tells Jake to go ahead and pack-up his stuff for the night as he and Lina feed the twins their usual dinner. Afterward, House gives the twins their baths. And he instructs Jake to bring his guitar along so he can play for the boys. After everything is packed in the minivan, House drops his kids at Wilson's apartment. On the way back, he swings by the grocery store and the flower shop.

When Cuddy enters her house, all of her senses are awaken. First- she smells the aroma of freshly cook Italian food coming from the kitchen. Second- she sees the gorgeous place setting and the romantic candlelit that adorn the dining table. Third- she hears the soft music playing in the background. Finally, she spots a dapper looking Greg House wearing his blue button down shirt as he hands her a bouquet of white roses. She is simply blown away by House's peace offering. She smiles at him and says "do you think doing all of these will let me forget the stunt you just pulled?"  
House puts on his best puppy-dog eyes and replies "No, but it will be enough for you to forgive me."  
Cuddy knows that he's absolutely right. House and the kids are her biggest weakness; she can never stay angry long enough. She tries her darndest to stay mad at House so she enumerates his indiscretions: "1st – you stole my password. 2nd – you used my password to access the hospital's mainframe. 3rd – you lied to Stacy about getting my approval. 4th – you got your patient drunk without his informed consent. 5th – you got yourself drunk within the premises of the hospital. 6th – you had our own teenage son drive your sorry drunk ass home. 7th – you did not discharge the patient after I clearly asked you to do so. That's just the list of items that I know, I'm sure there's more that I haven't unearth yet. "  
House nods and asks her "do you remember our first date?"  
"Yes. Don't you try changing the topic on me, I'm still mad at you."  
House flips the remote and out plays Berlin's _Take My Breath Away_ in the background.  
Cuddy says "that's our song?"  
House smiles and replies "yes, I borrowed the movie that we saw on our first date" as he shows her the cover of the '_Top Gun_' DVD movie. I also made you your favorite pasta dinner. And the 'pièce de résistance' we have the whole night to ourselves. The kids are all staying at Wilson's place."  
Cuddy is smiling from ear to ear since House has never done anything like this before. He has booked nice restaurant for them before but only if he needs to spy on his son's date or to ruin Wilson's date.

Cuddy asks "what is this really about? You've screwed up much worst before but you've never done anything like this for me."  
House replies "though I disagree with most of your administrative policies and your medical opinions, it doesn't negate the fact that you're a wonderful partner and an awesome mother to our children. I just want you to know that I love you and you're my queen (_ant_)."  
Cuddy's heart melts into a puddle and so does the list of House's indiscretion.

The two enjoy their peace and quiet night together. After their romantic candlelit dinner, they cuddle by the fireplace to watch 'Top Gun,' then they share a warm bath together. Afterward, the two heads to their bedroom to continue their love fest when Cuddy breathlessly pulls away and asks for "condom?"  
House continues kissing Cuddy while his arm reaches for a condom by his bedside drawer.  
He can't find one so he has to turn on the lights to get a good look at the drawer.  
"Damn! We're out."  
"Greg, you know I'm not on the pill (_Cuddy obsessively refuse to introduce hormonal pills into her system for at least six weeks after weaning the twins off her breast milk_). You'll either need to get one or we can continue this tomorrow."  
"No! Wait, I think I know where I can get one."  
House grabs his cell phone by his side table and limps out of the bedroom.

He dials #2 and says "Jake, this is Dad. I'm in your room, where do keep your condoms?"  
"Dad? It's almost midnight."  
"I know. Condoms, where?"  
"I got some in my wallet and …"  
"For god sake, I gave you a whole box full."  
"Sorry dad, I don't get that lucky enough to be walking around with a box full of condoms. Oh, I think I might have some in my backpack."  
House search for Jake's backpack and says "found it. Thanks. And Jake, how are the twins?"  
"They are still sleeping, same as what I told you when you called about half hour ago."  
"I didn't called half hour ago, I called maybe an hour or two ago."  
"Okay, maybe it was mom. Damn! Mom is on the other line. Can you two stop calling every half hour?"

***

Jake spends the next three weeks of his summer vacation under the tutelage of his Dad. He never did a rotation on pediatrics due to 'scheduling conflict.' The other fellows in the diagnostic department treat him like their own little brother meaning he gets picked on, tease on but in the end they all love him. Cameron has taken on giving Jake fashion advice (_to House's horror_), Chase has made Jake his golfing buddy, and Foreman has taken Jake under his wings giving him tips in establishing street creds (_which may come in handy in the tough streets of Harvard_).

On Jake's last day at work, Wilson, Foreman, and Chase sneak him into to strip bar. House knows about the outing but decides to sit this one out (_due to other parental obligations_). The guys are having a good time until someone starts a bar fight. Having learned his lessons before in New Orleans, Wilson immediately grab the others out the door. However, since all the doctors are too drunk to drive Jake who is supposed to be the celebrant ends up being the designated driver. He drives everyone home except Wilson, whose car he's driving. Jake's ride back to Boston is picking him up early in the morning so he can't stay at Wilson's place. Jake drives home, drags Wilson in the family room and gives him a pillow and blankets.

Jake leaves home before dawn and leaves a note in the kitchen to inform his parents about Wilson. Cuddy never sees Jake's note and she goes about her daily routine of feeding the twins and dressing them up for daycare. She is on her way out when she notices one of House's shirts hanging by the banister wall that separates the sunroom from the family room. She walks over to pick it up and sees more than what she had bargain for –a naked Wilson in her family room. Somehow, between the times that Jake left Wilson in the sofa and Cuddy finding him, Wilson decides to remove all his articles of clothing. Cuddy immediately wakes House up and informs him of his best friend's presence in their family room.

The next few weeks, Wilson cannot look at Cuddy in the eyes while Cuddy can't look at Wilson without bursting into laughter.

-------------------

_**Next Chapter: **__We're skipping 4 months and heading straight to December 2005._

_**To all my readers:** Vacation is over, I'm heading back to drudgery of real life so no more daily updates from me:-{ However, I promise to update at least twice a week. _


	29. Chapter 29

_**Author's Note:**__ I can't thank my beta __**Ceciilee**__ enough for being such an awesome editor. You're a joy to work with! Your wonderful insights and quick turnaround is greatly appreciated._

As always, I do appreciate all types of feedback, it's the only way I know if you love, hate, or even reading this story :-)

***

**_Christmas 2005_**

It's the week before Christmas and Cuddy has been running around shopping for Chrismukkah presents for her family. This holiday season promises to be a very busy one. The twins are celebrating their first birthday and both her parents and House's parents are spending the holiday with them. Unlike last year, Lina will not be available to help Cuddy during Christmas week. The Cuddy-House clan gave Lina a surprise early Chrismukkah present on Thanksgiving Day. They gave her round trip ticket to the Philippines, so she can spend the holiday with her family.

One item that is no longer on Cuddy's list of worries is the basement (_a.k.a. The Mancave_) – it's finally finished and completely furnished. Jake initially drafted the basement's construction plan two summers ago; he designed the floor plan that specify the location of every electric outlet, in-wall speaker, and even wrote the instructions for the carpenters on how to soundproof the ceiling/wall (_use staggered stud plus resilient channel and soundproof drywall_). House jokes that Jake definitely put his mom's anal retentiveness to shame with his attention to details. Cuddy knows how important it is for House to have a sanctuary of his own**;** a place where he can retreat from work and family pressures. Therefore, Cuddy let House and Jake decides on every single aspect of the basement construction. All she contributed was to arrange the work crew schedules and ensure that the boys are within their budget.

Jake comes home a week before Christmas but unlike the previous year, he decides not to work in the hospital. He informs his parents that he needs to recharge his batteries and will instead work on a special project at home. Cuddy knows not to push her son so she supports his decision. House on the other hand is curious about his son's 'special project.' Jake's special project includes setting up all the electronic equipments in the home theater room, networking all the computers in the house and building a Home Theater PC (HTPC). This means his mom can show pictures and videos of the twins on any TV; his dad can also surf the web while watching his favorite TV show, and he can playback any digital audio & video files he has stored on any of the networked computers on the big screen. But the pièce de résistance is the babies' room, it's now equipped with wireless webcams. Jake has heard from his mom that the twins regularly play together when they wake up—she has heard them through the baby monitor but has never really seen them 'in action.' The webcam will now allow his parents to watch the twins anywhere there's a TV monitor or even stream a live video feed of it to his website (_that Nana or Oma can watch in real time_).

***

**_Two days before Christmas_**

To celebrate the twins' birthday, Cuddy and the daycare staff decked the play area with Barney theme decorations—complete with Barney banners on the doors, large purple dinosaur footprints on the floor, balloons, hats and Barney music playing in the background. All of Ethan's and Charlie's daycare pals are treated with purple fruit punch, cupcakes (_and the older kids __get__ ice cream too_). Big brother Jake takes video and pictures of the festivity. House and Wilson arrive just in time to see little Charlie falling asleep while eating his cupcake. Ethan on the other hand, has made quite a mess on his face. When Ethan spots House, he takes a few wobbly steps towards his dad. House catches Ethan just in time before he falls to the floor. House lifts his son up and Ethan gives his dad a big slobbery kiss (_chocolate cupcake and all_). And just on cue, Cuddy puts a Barney hat on House's head and Jake takes a picture of the precious moment.  
Wilson raises a brow and asks "Barney?"  
House replies "don't look at me. I hate that purple dinosaur."  
Cuddy gently wipes the chocolate off House's face and replies "the twins simply adore Barney. You know what Charlie's first two word sentence was?"  
Wilson guesses "love Barney?"  
Cuddy and House shake their heads and House grumbles "god! I would have disowned him if he had said that."  
Cuddy tenderly rubs House's back and says "Charlie yelled 'Dada No!' after House changed the channel one morning."  
House offers Ethan to Cuddy as the boy tries to wiggle away from his arm.

House asks Wilson "what are your plans for Christmas? Are you spending it with what's her name?  
"Her name is Vicky and we haven't made plans yet."  
"You mean she hasn't told you her plans yet?"  
Wilson rolls his eyes and replies "she's not like all my ex-wives. For one, she's an orphan so I don't have to do those awkward meet the parents stuff."  
"Oh yeah? Then why don't you two celebrate Christmas with us. We'll have an overflow of parents, and sure to have lots of awkward moments. But most importantly, you gotta see my new kickass Mancave. Boy genius over there designed it and all."  
"Yeah, Lisa mentioned the basement. She said she's glad that your poker buddies can now use the back entrance during poker nights. So, how come you never invite me over to play poker?"  
House looks away from Wilson and replies "okay then, we'll see you on Christmas day. Dinner is at seven, be there on time; unless of course, you really want to witness a really awkward moment."

After the party, the family goes home to find Emma and Harry waiting for them. The dotting grandparents immediately play with the twins while Jake plugs in his camera's memory card to his Dad's computer (_in the study room_) and presto! A slide show of the party pictures display over the family room TV.  
Afterward, the twins take their nap, while Cuddy and her mom chat by the kitchen counter.  
Emma inquires "so, when are Greg's parent coming?"  
"They're driving from Ohio tomorrow."  
"You mentioned before that Greg doesn't get along with his dad, what do you think will happen?"  
"Hopefully, they'll avoid each other and Blythe will get a chance to bond with her grandchildren. I spoke to her the other day and she's very excited to finally be meeting Jake."  
"Oh, she'll love him. They'll both love him. That kid definitely got his charm from our side of the family."  
"I hope you're right. John is a bit of a character. He's a stereotypical Marine, I guess."  
"Don't worry Lise; I have met my share of jarheads in my career. They're mostly all bark. Did you say he used to be a pilot?"  
Cuddy nods and replies "yes, he was a test pilot."  
"Good, he and Harry will have something to talk about."  
"Why? Was Harry a pilot too?"  
"Yes, he did his stint with the RAF before he joined the Foreign Office."  
Cuddy teasingly asks her mom "For someone who's supposed to be retired, you two do a lot of traveling. Are you sure you two are not living double lives as secret spies?"  
Emma laughs and replies "Yeah, geriatric spies are all the rage now. But seriously, he's been very busy doing security consulting work. All these multinational companies want to make sure all their physical and personnel assets are secured."  
Cuddy nods and replies "Well, I'm just glad you two found time to be here. The holidays would not be the same without you both."  
"Are you kidding me? I wouldn't miss my grandsons' first birthday for all gold in the world."

Meanwhile, House and Jake give Harry a tour of the newly finished basement. The furnished basement added almost 5000 sq. ft. of living space to their home. It comprises of five major zones: 1st – the home theater area is equip with Dolby surround sound, custom lighting, digital video and audio. All the home theater equipments are hidden discretely behind a closet and are fully operational with custom programmed remote control. Much of the work on the basement was spent on this area as Jake was very particular about installing structured wiring, a dedicated power line, and soundproofing the room. 2nd – Behind the home theater area is the wet bar section, completely equipped with its own Kegerator (_Keg Dispenser_). 3rd – the game room is situated on the opposite side of the house near the walk out basement entrance/exit door. This room was personally furnished by House and Jake describes it as his dad's 'ode to the 80's'. House's personal guitars are displayed on the wall, so are a few vintage concert posters and a couple of shelves filled with interesting knick knacks that House has collected throughout the years. The main area consists of a pool table, a vintage jukebox, a retro pinball machine, a fully-restored arcade cabinet (_with Ms. Pac-man/Pac-Man/Galaga games_) and a poker table. Cuddy loves the fact that House's poker buddies (_who aside from Mr. Kim, she has no clue where House met them_) can simply use the walk out basement door during their poker nights. There's also a washroom near the game room. 4th – the bedroom area (_a.k.a. Jake's room_) is very utilitarian. It has a bed, closet and its own bathroom. 5th – the utility/HVAC area which is often forgotten section of the basement didn't escape Jake's eagle eye for detail as he ensured that this area are also properly soundproofed.

Harry is very impressed at how Jake has set-up the babies' room. Jake placed two wireless cameras in the room and configured it to capture videos if it detects motion.  
Harry asks if intruders can tap into the signal using digital eavesdropping device.  
"The secret is not to use those X-10 cameras that you can buy for cheap. They're easily hackable because they use an unlicensed 2.4GHz band. Although I used a regular webcam, I've encrypted the signal so intruders can't hijack it from the point I'm recording it to where I'm transferring the image to my server."  
Harry nods and ask if he can see the camera in action.  
"Sure, why don't you watch the camera from the family room, while dad and I can go to the babies' room?"  
The trio heads up to main floor, Jake turn-on the TV in the family room and walks over to the babies' room.  
Harry quickly explains what's going on to Cuddy and Emma.  
House who hasn't seen the webcam work before asks "how long have you had the camera up?"  
Jake replies "I installed it a couple of days ago. Why?"  
"And its recording videos when it detects any motion in the room?"  
Jake rolls his eyes and replies "don't worry Dad; the cameras are pointed only at the crib not anywhere else in the room."  
House breathes a sigh of relief and asks "you don't have cameras anywhere else in the house, right?"  
Jake shakes his head and replies "nope, just the babies' room."  
"Good, I'd hate to see a movie titled _'The Dean and the Diagnostician'_ on the shelves of my favorite porn shop."  
Jake who was leaning by the babies changing table, immediately pulls his hands away and says "Dad, that's just gross!"


	30. Chapter 30

_**Disclaimer:**__ All rights belong to Fox and David Shore.  
__**Author's Notes:**__ Special thanks to my beta __**Ceciilee,**__ for continuing to do such an awesome job editing this fic._

***

_**Day before Christmas  
**_  
John and Blythe arrive at the Cuddy-House residence around five in the afternoon. House and Jake are by the front door to greet them. Blythe gives both men a kiss and a big hug. John extends his hand to both, House takes it and nods to his dad. However Jake not only gives his grandfather's a handshake, but he also gives him a big hug. John is obviously uncomfortable about the physical contact from his grandson but doesn't say anything. House introduces his parents to both Emma and Henry (_Harry_). And since Blythe already met Emma in London, the two immediately pick up where they left off. Both Blythe and Emma head off to the twins' bedroom to join Cuddy and dote on their grandchildren.

Meanwhile John, Harry and Jake exchange pleasantries by the family room. All House wants to do is join the ladies in the babies' room, but he just can't leave his son within the vicinity of his father. So, House pretends to be busy with something in the kitchen where he's out of sight but within hearing distance.  
Jake asks his grandfather "dad mentioned that you were a pilot back in the days. What types of planes did you fly?"  
John smiles at his grandson's interest and replies "I flew a Sikorsky CH-53A helicopter during my first tour at Nam and an F-4 Phantom on my second tour—well, before it got shot down. Then I flew an A-4 Skyhawk on my last tour."  
Harry nods to acknowledge John's impressive pilot resume.  
Jake eagerly asks his grandfather to share some of his war stories and John is as excited (_if not more_) to tell his stories. After about half hour through his father's war stories, House realizes that his father will probably not say anything stupid to his newly converted number one fan. He heads to the babies' room to join the ladies and the twins.

As the ladies are preparing supper, Cuddy asks House to keep an eye on the twins. House takes the twins down the basement, turns on his music and lets them play around the home theater room. The boys are now beginning to walk so they crawl around a bit, stand up, take several steps and then fall. House is just glad that they tripled the amount of carpet padding or the boys would really have sore behinds.

Back in the family room, John is simply beside himself that he has two willing audiences. After John has completed sharing his war exploits, Jake informs his Grandfather that Harry used to be a pilot as well.  
John is surprised and asks "what branch did you served and what did you fly?"  
Harry casually replies "I was with RAF for a bit of time. I flew a helicopter and some planes."  
Jake interjects "Come on Harry. If you won't tell, I will. Harry joined RAF when he was my age. He first flew a Sikorsky S-51 helicopter and then an F-4M Phantom II."  
John noticeably envious that his grandson knows the minutia of his step-grandfather's achievements so asks "how did you know all this?"  
Jake replies "Nana and I went to his retirement party at the Foreign Office. They did a whole presentation on his distinguish career at both RAF and the Foreign Office. Foreign Minister Jack Straw personally handed him the Cabinet Secretary's Award. "  
John asks Harry "Saw any action?"  
Harry replies "Not nearly as much as you did."  
Jake asks "the Brits were never really in a war the scale of Vietnam, right Harry?"  
Harry shakes his head and replies "thank god no. Although, we do have our share of foreign policy follies."  
Jake asks "is that why you join the Foreign Office? To make peace instead of war?"  
Harry looks at Jake for awhile and laughs "that! My boy is something your Nana would say. I, on the other, make no pretense of the fact that I am not and never was a diplomat."  
Jake has puzzled look on him asks "but you're in the British Foreign Office? Or are you really a spy like my Dad say?"  
Harry smiles and answers "like your grandfather, I served my country when and where she needs me. My military background and expertise in matters of the Middle East and North Africa made me of use to the Foreign Office."  
Jake nods and says "it's really great that people in your generation found service in the military noble enough to sacrifice your own life." **  
**John inquires "and you don't think that your country is worth the sacrifice?"  
Jake shrugs his shoulder and replies "Of course she is. But like Harry said, we can serve our country in many ways. I think I can serve her better in medicine."  
John scoffs at Jake's remark and adds "your father said the same thing. The House family has a long tradition of military service that goes back to the American Revolutionary war. Your father broke that tradition by not serving in the military."  
Meanwhile, Harry looks at John incredulously and offers "I came from generations of sheep herders. Thank god my grandfather wasn't gormless (_stupid_) enough to force my father to herd sheep just to continue the proud family tradition."  
Cuddy catches herself laughing at Harry's remark but quickly calls her son to the kitchen in the event that John goes off with his rant. She quietly asks Jake to go down and help his dad keep an eye on the twins.

John defensively asks Harry "are you mocking my family tradition?"  
Harry replies "with all due respect. Traditions, like records are made to be broken. If I had been blessed to have a world-renowned diagnostician for a son, I'd be proud of him and gladly encourage him to build a new tradition of his own. Which Greg is apparently doing with his sons? Jake is a genius and the twins are obviously smarter than the average one-year old baby. Between Greg's brain and Lisa's work ethic their children could probably take over the world."  
"Gregory chose medicine to spite me."  
"Did he? Or did he choose it because that's where his talent and interest lays. And by all account, his decision to pursue medicine has resulted in hundreds of lives saved."  
"I don't deny the fact that he's a brilliant doctor; he could still have been a doctor in the military. He chose to be a civilian because he knew that it would disappoint me the most."  
"Ah, history is filled with sons disappointing their fathers and fathers who disappointed their sons. We've lived the life we chose for ourselves, why not let our sons do the same?"  
"You got kids, Harry?"  
"Yes, I had a son. We couldn't be as different as night and day. I joined RAF when I was seventeen; he attended University. While I was in the Foreign Office, he was organizing anti-government rallies. He lived the life that he thought was right and I couldn't have been more proud of him."  
"What did he do and how did he died?"  
"He was a human rights activist and a bloody good one if I may say so myself. He and some chaps caused quite a bit of ruckus when they helped a Palestinians group organize a strike in the Gaza strip. It sadly cost him his life but he went out blazing."  
John pats Harry's shoulder and says "I'm sorry. How old was he when he died?"  
"He was only 27. Never had a chance to have a family of his own."  
"Did you agree with his cause? I wouldn't know what I will do if Gregory had been one of them hippie war protester."  
"Why would it matter? Would he have been less of a son to me if I disagreed with him? Will you love your son more if he agrees with you?"  
"I treat my son the same way my father treated me. In my time, you don't ask question, you simply follow what your father told you to do."  
"That's what made you great as a Marine; you follow orders. Greg is brilliant at what he does because he doesn't follow what others before him have done."  
"I never really thought of it that way."  
"I say, settle this thing between you and your son while you still can. And if you really want to give your son a taste of his own medicine, go spoil his kids rotten and see how he takes it."  
John smiles and adds "my wife will like that."  
"So does mine. Come on mate, let's make our wives happy and truly enjoy our retirement."

After supper, Cuddy and House spend quite time alone in their bedroom. Cuddy is busy wrapping gifts while House is busy getting frisky with Cuddy. Cuddy smacks House hands and tells him "are you crazy? Our parents and our kids are downstairs."  
"That's fine. We'll keep it down."  
"No, they could come up."  
"I locked the door. Come on, just a quickie."  
"No, I need to finish wrapping these. If you had told me you invited Wilson and his girlfriend earlier then I wouldn't have to do last minute wrapping."  
"Okay, I'll wait until you finish."  
"Greg! I said no."  
"Your lip says no but your thigh, and pretty much the rest of your body says yes" as House continues unwrapping his early Christmas present.

Meanwhile, the grandparents spend time with all the grandchildren in the basement. Both Emma and Blythe chat as they leave their husbands to babysit. The presence of a fellow military man helps John slowly adjust to his new role as a grandfather. John is more verbose and physical that gets the kids all excited, while Henry is quieter and gentler; his calm demeanor soothes the children. By the end of the night, John realizes that being a grandfather is much easier than being a father. He gets to tell all the stories he wants and the children take his word for it. His eldest grandson thinks he's larger than John Wayne, while the twin thinks he's stronger than superman because he can lift them up in the air. It is a definitely a wonderful Christmas Eve in the Cuddy-House residence.

_**TBC**_

_**Author's Note #2:**__ Please continue clicking the "Review this story/chapter" button at the bottom of this page. I do appreciate all types of feedback, it's the only way I know if you love, hate, or even reading this story ;-)_


	31. Chapter 31

_**Disclaimer:**__ All rights belong to Fox and David Shore.  
__**Author's Notes:**__ Special thanks to my beta __**Ceciilee,**__ for continuing to do such an awesome job editing this fic._

***

**_Christmas Day_**_**  
**_  
As soon as Cuddy hears the twins in the baby monitor, she turns on the TV and selects the appropriate channel. She wakes House beside her to show him what the twins are up to.  
House grumpily wakes up and rants "I better get a really nice Christmas present tonight."  
"You won't, if you don't wake-up."  
The twins' sleep in separate cribs but their parents made sure that they're side by side so they can easily see each other. Well, what the parents are about to find out is what the twins do when they wake up; one of the twins kicks the other over the railing. Then they start poking at each other, one stands up, starts babbling for awhile, and climbs over the crib railing.  
Cuddy's heart begins to pound and she exclaims "oh my god, Greg get the boys before they fall and hurt themselves."  
House starts laughing and replies "Lise, they have probably been doing that for weeks now. Just watch and relax."  
True enough; Ethan goes over the railing to the other crib where he plays with Charlie. After a few minutes, Charlie moves to the other crib. House sits up in his bed to see which of the twins is pulling the mobile off the crib and yells "it's Charlie! It's always the quite one you have to watch out for." Both parents start laughing because they finally solve the mystery of which twin keeps pulling the mobile off and throwing it on the floor. They both had suspected it was Ethan since the mobile that keeps falling off is on his crib, now they know that the two not only switch cribs but Charlie is the culprit. House looks at Cuddy and asks "why doesn't he touch his own mobile?"  
"I don't know. And we need to make sure that we lift up that railing between them."  
After about half hour of playing, the twins get bored and begin to cry.

House and Cuddy walk out of their bedroom and head straight to the twins' room. They take hold of the twins and bring them to the kitchen to greet all their grandparents. Blythe, John, Emma and Harry are done eating their breakfast; and are simply chatting by the table. As soon as the boys are in sight, Blythe and Emma immediately greet them "happy birthday!" Both Ethan and Charlie are so excited to see their grandmas that they start wiggling from their parents.  
Blythe asks House and Cuddy "are the baby motorcycles their birthday gifts or their Christmas gifts?"  
Cuddy replies "that's their birthday gifts from Daddy and their big brother."  
House asks "can they see it now?"  
"Not yet, they need to eat breakfast first."  
House pouts for a little but then help prepares the boys' breakfast food (_cereal, milk and banana_)

Cuddy is about to feed the boys breakfast when John warns Harry to "watch out for this one" as he points to Ethan. "This one can spit his food on target, might grow up to be a good marksman." House is surprised that his dad is making light of what had happened a few months ago, but is still skeptical that the Colonel can hold his temper around his kids. House signals for Cuddy to take Charlie while he feeds Ethan, but both older men order them to step aside. House and Cuddy look at each other as John and Harry take the spoons and bowls away from them.  
Harry states "I have $20 riding on little Ethan here finishing his breakfast before little Charlie."  
All Cuddy can do is nod. Emma warns Harry and John to make sure that the boys swallow their food properly before feeding them the next spoon.

House goes over to his mom and whisper "what happened to him?" referring to his father.  
Blythe smiles and replies "he's simply enjoying being a grandfather."  
House looks at his mom skeptically and sarcastically says "right. And my thigh is growing muscles too."  
Cuddy comes over, gently rubs House back and quietly tells him to "behave and enjoy it while you can."

After breakfast, the twins get to play with their toy motorcycles. Cuddy and House push them around the house for at least twenty minutes. Until Cuddy begins to notice that House is favoring his left leg more, she immediately asks her mom "do you mind taking them out for a walk?"  
Emma replies "sure, Harry and I can definitely use some exercise and the boys can have fun too."  
Blythe interjects "John and I can join you too."  
As the grandparents take the twins out for a ride on their new motorcycles, Cuddy decides to begin baking the boys' birthday cakes. She is mixing the cake when she notices House reaching for another Vicodin. That's the second time she has seen him take Vicodin in the span of three hours so she asks "Greg, is the pain bothering you?"  
House irritably answers "what kind of idiotic question is that? I'm always in pain. When am I not in pain?"  
"I know that. I've just been noticing that you're taking more Vicodin again. You know if you continue taking that much dosage, your liver is gonna shut down."  
"Spare me the lecture; I also went to medical school."  
"I'm not lecturing. I'm just concern; you now have three kids who depend on you. Wouldn't you want to see them grow up, go to college and get married?"  
"Lise, I'm not in the mood to discuss this with you. Just let me enjoy my Christmas morning, okay?"  
Before Lisa can reply, Jake joins them in the kitchen.

***

The rest of the day, House sulks in his mancave while the rest of family gathers on the main floor. Jake comes down to inform his dad that the twins' are about to blow out the candles on their birthday cakes.  
House replies "They're one year old. It's not like they can remember it."  
Jake replies "they're only turning one once. I know they will have no memory of the celebration, but the boys will see the pictures and they'll appreciate it someday."  
House rolls his eyes and tells his son to leave him alone.  
Jake doesn't like it when his dad's moodiness borders on meanness. But he doesn't want to argue with his dad so he leaves.  
Jake informs his mom that dad isn't up to joining them; Cuddy is deeply hurt but tries to hide her disappointment by proceeding with the celebration without House.

The twins don't know how to blow their candles yet, but they love their cakes. Cuddy baked each of the boys their own small yellow cakes. They quickly eat and play with their cakes while Jake takes lots of pictures. The grandparents enjoy watching the kids' antics.  
When John notices that House never joined the celebration, he asks Cuddy and is inform that his son is not feeling well.  
John goes down to the basement and asks House "what's wrong with you?"  
"You mean aside from the fact that I'm a cripple?"  
"Grow up Gregory. There are lots of people who have it worst than you do and they live a happy productive life."  
"Productive maybe, happy I doubt that."  
"Bullshit! Are you telling me that you're unhappy with your family?"  
"No, of course not! The point I'm making is no one can be happy when they're in constant pain like I am."  
"Is that it? You're in pain, so take it out on your wife and kids?"  
"I don't take it out on them and Lise is not my wife…yet."  
"Of course, sulking in the basement while your boys are blowing candles on their first birthday cakes is just your way of showing them you care."  
"For god's sake, they're one year old. How many birthday cakes do I need to see them eat?"  
John shakes his head and replies "Yeah, I forgot that you stop being a father the day they were conceived. And you think I'm the bad father? At least, I never missed any of your birthdays while you were growing up."  
"I'm here am I? What else do you want from me?"  
"You got yourself a good woman in Lisa and three wonderful boys. God knows, they deserve better but they have you. Don't screw this one up too..."  
"Come on say it, Dad. You think I'm gonna screw this one up like everything else in my life."  
"Gregory, I never said you were a screw-up. You always think that you never measured up to my expectations, but in reality it's the other way around. You always acted that you were smarter and better than me—the genius child prodigy who thinks that he's too good for his Jarhead father. "  
"I have never said that you were not good enough to be my father. I just said that you are not my biological father."  
"Guess what? There's more to fatherhood than getting your girlfriend knock-up. I may not be a genius like you, but I have never walked away from my responsibilities to your mother. No wonder Lisa won't marry you." With that statement, a truly hurt John walks away from his son.

Soon after the conversation with his Dad, House takes another Vicodin, goes up to the main floor and joins the rest of the family. No one mentions anything about House's absence but it's in everyone's mind. His father is still visibly hurt and angry from their exchange, but it doesn't bother House. However, receiving a glare and silent treatment from Cuddy disturbs him. The other thing that troubles him is the fact that his eldest son is walking on eggshells with him. He feels a mixture of embarrassment and disappointment at his own behavior. His father's parting words hit House in more ways than one. House realizes that he had just missed all three of his son's first birthday cakes. He thinks to himself "I am worst than the man I despise—at least Dad had never missed my birthdays. And did Lisa tell dad that she'll never marry me?"

**_TBC_**

_**Author's Note #2:**__ Please continue clicking the "Review this story/chapter" button at the bottom of this page. I do appreciate all types of feedback, it's the only way I know if you love, hate, or even reading this story ;-)_


	32. Chapter 32

_**Disclaimer:**__ All rights belong to Fox and David Shore.  
__**Author's Notes:**__ Special thanks to my beta __**Ceciilee,**__ for continuing to do such an awesome job editing this fic._

***

When Wilson and his new girlfriend arrive, House immediately grabs Wilson in the pretense of showing him the mancave.  
Wilson asks "what's up? If I didn't know you any better, I'll say that you're really excited to show me your basement."  
"Yeah, I need your help. I kindda screw up something today."  
"Your dad again?"  
"No, worst than that. My whole family."  
"Lisa and the boys?"  
House nods  
"What happened?"  
"Lise was nagging me about my Vicodin intake and the pain in my leg is getting worst. I just want to be left alone."  
"Okay, I think I'm still with you."  
"I missed the boys' birthday cake thing, Lisa and Jake haven't spoken a word to me, and my dad said Lise will never marry me."  
"Wooah, wooah, wooah! Slow down there; let's tackle one thing at a time. The boys' birthday thing, you missed it because?"  
"I was pissed. I was in pain. I just didn't want to go up and join them."  
"Well, you're you."  
"What's that suppose to mean?"  
"You're moody and you brood. So, Lisa and Jake haven't said a word to you because you missed the twins' birthday cake thing?"  
"Yeah."  
"Well, you just have to think of ways to make it up to the boys. It's now six-thirty; you still have a few hours until the end of their birthday."  
House nods and a smirk forms on his mouth as he thinks of something.  
Wilson asks "about the Lisa will never marry you thing, did you finally pop the question?"  
House shakes his head "no, not recently."  
"Wooah, wooah, wooah! You mean you've asked her to marry you before?"  
House shrugs his shoulder and replies "heh, awhile back."  
"Are we talking days? weeks? months? years?"  
"Years ago?"  
"You asked Lisa to marry you years ago? You didn't even ask Stacy and she's the love of..."  
House interrupts Wilson "stop saying that Stacy is the love of my life. I never said that, you just assumed that she is because you think I was devastated when she left."  
"You weren't?"  
"Of course, I was upset that she left but I wasn't devastated because of it. I was dealing more with my leg and Lise…"  
"Okay, let's go back to Lisa. When did you pop the question?"  
"In Michigan, the night before I left for my residency. I wanted her to come with me to San Francisco."  
"She said no?"  
House shakes his head and replies "She never really answered me. And I didn't want to ask again because I don't want to hear her say no."  
Wilson has a puzzled look on his face and asks "that's interesting. When you asked, did you do the whole dinner thing?"  
"No, it wasn't exactly the ideal scenario. I never even got a chance to show her the ring."  
"Interesting. Okay, she never saw the ring and she never answered you. Was she within the vicinity when you asked her or was all of these just playing in your own head?"  
"Oh, she heard me alright. She was under me."  
"You proposed to her while you were having sex?"  
"Good time as any other."  
"You idiot! She probably thought you were saying it in the throngs of passions."  
"I'm not like you. I'm not good at these things."  
"So, are you planning to pop the question again? Is that why it's bothering you? I mean what your dad said about Lisa won't marry you."  
"I was. But this pain in my leg is getting worst and what if she says no?"  
"Interesting."  
"Would you stop saying that word!"  
"Why? I say interesting cause I find it 'interesting' that the pain in your leg starts happening when you begin considering asking Lisa to marry you."  
"You think the pain is all in my head? That I made it up so I don't have to deal with the marriage thing?"  
"Do you think that's coincidence?"  
"I don't know."  
"So, what brought on this marriage thing? Did Lisa finally give you an ultimatum?  
"No! Can't I decide to ask to marry her on my own?"  
"I doubt it. You are House and you hate change! You don't do it unless you get dragged into it."  
"I'm fine with change. In case you forgot, Lise and I live together in a house that we bought together. Oh, we have three kids together too. If that's not change, then I don't know what is."  
"Would you have actually live together if she had not gotten all excited and thought you were moving-in? Would you have been okay with having kids if she wasn't already pregnant?"  
"Sure, you don't think you're the only one who wants the wife, the kids, and the white picket fence thing?"  
"I just never thought of you as that type."  
"I envisioned it twenty years ago but I only wanted that life with Lise. When she didn't say yes to my proposal, I buried that dream and swore I would never have a wife or kids no matter what. When I got the job at PPTH, I exhumed that dream at the off chance she was still available. But the infraction thing happened. I not only lost the use of my leg, but the hope that Lise might want to be with me again."  
"So, you were devastated at the prospect that Lisa might not take you back because of your leg? You weren't even really thinking about Stacy then? I mean she was the one by your bedside and the one waiting for you at home—all time that time you were only thinking of Lisa?"  
House nods and replies "It has always been Lise for me. The thought of marrying Stacy never even crossed my mind. I made it clear to her from the very start that marriage and kids were out of the question. You and everyone just assumed that I didn't want children period but the truth is that I never wanted them with anyone else but Lise. It has always been Lise; Now, more than ever. I just can't imagine living without her and the kids. You have no idea how devastated I felt when I left Michigan without her.**"**  
Wilson is now all teary eye with House's last sentence. "Damn! That's the most romantic thing I've ever heard you say. You better say that to Lisa when and if you ever propose to her."  
House smirk at Wilson's remark. Then Wilson asks "so what's the real reason you're bringing up this marriage proposal again after twenty years?"  
House gives his best friend a 'you got me look' and replies "I just want this thing between Lise and I to be legal. I'm tired of men thinking they can hit on her just because she doesn't have a ring on her finger."  
"You know, the ring will not stop horny guys from hitting on her right?"  
"No, but my fist hitting their face will."  
Before Wilson can answer, Jake informs them "Dad, Wilson, dinner is ready."  
House looks up to his son and asks "you got a minute, son?"  
Jake nods and Wilson gets it as a sign for him to leave both father and son.

***

The Christmas dinner is going smoother than expected as everyone stays on safe topic. There was only one faux pas, as Harry initially mistook Wilson's young girlfriend as Jake's girlfriend. Ever since his third divorce, Wilson has been going through a series of girlfriends. House refers to them as his "flavor-of-the-month" since they normally don't last more than a month. House and Wilson chat about the upcoming Monster Truck show, while Jake entertains Wilson's girlfriend since she seems very lost with all the various conversation on the table. Harry and John discuss politics; and even the twins are blabbing on about something to each other. Meanwhile, Blythe and Emma are drilling Cuddy if she and House are planning for another baby. The two grandmothers hint that they're both giving Greg the perfect gift for Christmas.

Afterward, Cuddy approach House and asks him "are you up for giving the twins their baths?"  
House nods and replies "but not after they blow-out their birthday cake for daddy."  
"Greg, they already did their birthday cake earlier. And I need you to make sure that you clean behind their ears cause they really made a mess with the cake."  
"No, they did the boring cakes earlier. Now, they get to blow-out daddy's awesome cakes."  
Cuddy raises her brow as she knows that House didn't bake anything.  
Right on cue, Jake joins them holding two plates of wiggly jello. It's made of lime (green) jell-o with gummy worms decorated all over the jello. Cuddy immediately smiles at House's gesture.  
As the boys start rummaging through their jello birthday cakes, Wilson in a low tone asks House "how were you able to pull that off in less than a few minutes?"  
"The boys and I usually make them at the wet bar downstairs. Jake and I just added the gummy worms to make it look more colorful."  
Wilson smiles, pats House in the back and adds "the thing that you're planning to do. Do Lise a big favor and make sure you run it by me first, okay?"  
House smiles at Wilson and immediately ducks as the twins start throwing the worms all over the place.

***

**_A Month Later_**_**  
**_Cuddy is coming out of the Clinic when she gets pull-over by the pharmacist.  
"Dr. Cuddy, do you have a minute?"  
"Of course Marco, what can I do for you?"  
"I hate to be a tattletale but I think you should know that Dr. House has doubled his Vicodin prescription in the last month."  
"What do you mean? I have been renewing his monthly prescription and you've been refilling it for me."  
"Yes, we have. But when I did the audit this morning, it says that Dr. Wilson has also prescribed him Vicodin and that he's had the night pharmacist filled it for him."  
Cuddy is shock at the information but quickly dismisses it "I'm sure it's for one of Dr. House's patient. He always loses his script pad and will often ask Wilson to write it for him. But I greatly appreciate you keeping a vigil on things and informing me about this Marco."  
Marco nods and believes Cuddy's reassurance that it's probably just for a patient.

Cuddy immediately hunts down Wilson to confront him "when did you start prescribing Vicodin to House?"  
Wilson stutters and replies "I wrote a script for him last week when he left his Vicodin at home, why?"  
"When have you seen House without his Vicodin? Did you seriously think he left home without his prescription? I think he went through the one I prescribed to him for the month in two weeks."  
"He was really in pain and I thought I was helping him. Sorry, I didn't know."  
"Don't be sorry, it's not your fault. The next time he asks for a prescription, send him back to me."  
Wilson nods as he realizes that his friend's pain must really be getting worst for House to start lying to both the love of his life and his best friend.

**_TBC_**

_**Author's Note #2:**__ Please continue clicking the "Review this story/chapter" button at the bottom of this page. I do appreciate all types of feedback, it's the only way I know if you love, hate, or even reading this story ;-)_


	33. Chapter 33

**Author's Note:** Again, a very very big thanks to my beta _**cecilee**_ who has done an awesome job of editing and giving me ideas to better this chapter.

I do appreciate all types of feedback, it's the only way I know if you love, hate, or even reading this story ;-)

***

Cuddy finds House sleeping in Exam Room #2 and immediately yells "House! What do you think you're doing?"  
House wakes up startled by Cuddy's voice and replies "stop yelling woman! Can't you tell I'm taking a nap?"  
Cuddy is obviously not amused "if you want to take a nap, go home."  
"When I'm at home, you yell for me to go to work. Now I'm at work, you want me to go home?"  
Cuddy commands "drop your pants."  
"Well Dr. Cuddy, I never knew you were into kinky public sex but if you insist, I'm game."  
"Greg, I'm serious. I know for a fact that you've doubled your Vicodin intake in the last month. I want to check if your leg has gotten worst."  
House drops his pants as ordered but informs Cuddy "the leg is atrophied. It's not going to miraculously grow back muscles."  
Cuddy examines House's right thigh to check if the size of the atrophied muscle has expanded or if he recently infected it. After she is satisfied, she orders him "pull your pants up."  
"I don't even get a nookie? How rude after I went through all the trouble of dropping my pants. I'm even wearing the underwear you bought me."  
Cuddy shakes her head and seriously asks "Greg, I think your Vicodin addiction is now affecting both your work and our family life."  
"Lise, you are overreacting."  
"I received four complaints from clinic patients this week and five last week."  
"It's not my fault that all your clinic patients are idiots."  
"This morning, you left a rectal thermometer in a patient's butt for at least half hour."  
"He deserved it. He tripped me."  
"Only after you made disparaging remark about him. His wife is one of our dying patients. He's going through enough pressure in his life. The last thing he needs is for a doctor to insult him when he only asks that you do a test on him."  
"Tough shit! We all have our problem."  
"And what was your excuse for blowing off all your consult requests the last two weeks?"  
"So, I'm a little distracted. All the more reason why I need more Vicodin, they help me let me do my job. They take away my pain and they let me function."  
Cuddy hands him a brochure and adds "Greg, check out the pain management program to help you get hold of this issue. It's not enough that you can function to do your job; I need you to be a reliable partner and father to our children."  
"Are you serious? You really think that Vicodin is affecting my judgment with the boys?"  
"Yes, I need to know that I can trust you with the boys. They need a father who will not forget to pick them up from daycare or leave them to their own device when he's too high on Vicodin. I need you to manage the pain before you physically or emotionally hurt the people you love. Jake looked really hurt after you blew him off on the twin's birthday. He didn't deserve that and you know it."  
Cuddy leaves House in a state of shock. His family is the only thing he has going for him. It hurts him to think that he has let Lise and the boys down. He sullenly walks out of the exam room and heads back to his office to read the brochure that Cuddy gave him.

***

Afterward, House enters Wilson's offices and accuses him "you ratted me out."  
"No, you lied to me. You didn't leave your prescription at home; you went through them in half the time."  
House takes a deep breath and continues "Lise wants me to attend the Princeton Pain Management (PPM) program. What do you know about it?"  
"You're actually considering doing it?"  
"I don't have a choice. It's either that or I'll probably lose her and the kids."  
"I'm sorry. Well, the good news is the PPM program is one of the top in the country. They're located at the University Medical Center so no one in this hospital will know that you're attending 'therapy.' It's run by Dr. Gupta so it has a mixture of both western and eastern medical influences."  
"Great! Curing pain by chanting Hare Krishna."  
"Absolutely not, it's like going to the regular hospital. You'll go through initial battery exams and tests. Then a group of doctors will evaluate you and they'll develop a personalize treatment plan for you. I mentioned the eastern influence because Gupta encourages his doctors to not be limited by current medical protocols. They look at alternative medicines from the East and the West, I think you'll be interested to know that they've been running several experimental treatments with their counterparts in various countries."  
"Yeah, I'm interested about their experimental study on Ketamine treatment as well as the muscle and nerve transplantation."  
"Well, the Ketamine experiment has shown promising results on patients with Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy (RSD) but it's really too early to tell. I'm not familiar with the nerve transplantation study."  
House nods and exclaims "maybe I can participate in one or both studies. Can you imagine what I can do with my leg back or to live without chronic pain?"  
"Yeah, you'll be running around with your boys."

***

That night, House informs Cuddy that he has contacted Gupta about joining the PPM program.  
"That's great news Greg! I'm very happy that you're trying alternative ways to overcome your chronic pain."  
House shrugs his shoulder and replies "you know, there's a possibility that I'll be at the Center every morning. Meaning, I'll probably have to cut back my hours to part-time."  
"Don't worry about that Greg. You have tons of sick leaves that you haven't used in the last six years. I'll talk to HR about charging your therapy hours as sick leave. And I'll have your staff go on rotation as acting department head while you're unavailable."  
House nods and seriously asks "were you seriously thinking about leaving me if I didn't join the program or were you just bluffing?"  
Cuddy looks him in the eye and replies "I take the safety of our kids seriously, Greg. Your erratic behavior these past few weeks scares me a lot."  
"I will never harm you or our kids."  
"I know you won't. But when you're high on Vicodin, I'm not sure if that is still you that I'm dealing with" she says sadly.  
All he ever wanted is to protect his family and to hear Lise say that she fears what he may do to his own kids, hurts him more than she'll ever know. House asks "when did you start feeling that way? I mean, feeling threaten that I'm not the same person that you know and love."  
"Last Christmas, when you lashed out at me for asking you about your Vicodin intake, and when you yelled at Jake for inviting you to the twins' birthday celebration."  
"You know I didn't mean to lash out at you or yell at Jake."  
"I know you didn't mean to, that's why I didn't say anything about your initial moodiness. I understand that when you are working on case you become withdrawn to me and the boys. But, when you start forgetting errands that you normally do with the boys, I suspected that there was something going on. The confirmation from Marco and Wilson made it clear to me that Vicodin was the cause of your sudden change."  
House nods, holds Cuddy in a tight embrace and whispers "I love you very much and I'll do everything to make it work."

***

**_Two Months Later_**_**  
**_House has been conscientiously attending all his scheduled appointments from physical therapy on (Mon, Wed, & Fri), massage therapy on (Tue & Thu), group therapy on Mondays and he even attends his worst nightmare—biweekly sessions with a psychiatrist. Ironically, none of his staff notice any changes to House's behavior since he still mocks them if they say anything stupid. Clinic patients still get the unique 'House hospitality treatments' and everyone at the hospital still thinks he's a jerk. The only two people who probably notice any change in House's behavior is Marco, the pharmacist now only refills half as much Vicodin for him. And the daycare staff; they've noticed that House no longer takes his kids out on day trips.

After his PPM appointments, he grabs a takeout lunch from one of his favorite sandwich place near the hospital. He walks into Wilson's office and drops the sandwich bag on his desk and declares "I got you your favorite turkey sandwich and chips. Sorry, no soda since I'm crippled and I need my hand for the cane."  
Wilson looks up and visibly surprised that his best friend bought him lunch "and to what do I owe this honor?"  
"I'm ready and I need your help."  
"Okay, ready for what?"  
House drops a ring box on Wilson's desk and replies "to pop the question."  
"Oh, that's awesome. I appreciate the sandwich and everything but I would have helped you even if you haven't bribe me."  
"I know, but if she says yes. You know you'll only be the second best man since I kindda offered that job to Jake already."  
"Good lord. I wouldn't mind at all. I think it's great that you planned that far ahead. So, you told Jake?"  
"Yeah, he told me to make sure I run the details by you. Can you believe that? My own son and my best friend have so little faith in me."  
"No, we just want to make sure that the answer is yes. Oh heck, who am I kidding? Yeah, we think you'll screw it up if left to your own device." Wilson opens the ring box and observes that it's an 18k white gold 2ct diamond solitaire ring and asks "was this the ring you bought for her twenty years ago?"  
House nods and replies "I bought it eighteen years ago. Why? Is it dated?"  
"No not all. It's simple and elegant. It's perfect for Lisa. I bet this would cost you an arm and leg now."  
"It cost me an arm and leg then. I used the money my Opa and Oma gave me as a down payment for a house."  
House takes the ring back and safely puts it in his pocket. The two proceed with their lunch as they hatch out a plan for House's perfect proposal.

Afterward, House joins his team in the conference center as they try to run a DDx on their new patient. House is writing on his white board when a disheveled man starts waving the gun at him. House asks "what seems to be the problem?"  
"You son-of-a-bitch! You killed my wife!" the man points his gun at House and shoots him twice.  
Foreman and Chase try to wrestle the gun away but aren't successful as the gunmen quickly runs away. Foreman immediately calls Wilson; Chase calls help while Cameron tries to contact Cuddy.

**_TBC_**


	34. Chapter 34

**Author's Note:** Again, a very very big thanks to my beta _**cecilee**_ who has done an awesome job of editing and giving me ideas to better this chapter.

I do appreciate all types of feedback, it's the only way I know if you love, hate, or even reading this story ;-)

***

House is rush on a gurney through the halls of the hospital and all he can see are flashes of lights. He's in and out of consciousness but he desperately needs to talk to Cuddy. He tries yelling her name "Lise…Lise…Lise" but no one can hear him or everyone is ignoring him so he tries "Cuddy…Cuddy…Cuddy."  
Someone is shushing him and telling him not to talk.  
He hears Wilson asking if anyone got hold of Cuddy. Finally, he feels relieve that someone is getting Cuddy.  
House calls out "Wilson…"  
"I'm here buddy. You're gonna be alright. We're rushing to surgery now."  
House grabs Wilson's collar "if I don't make it, I need you to promise me something."  
"You're gonna be fine. It'll be routine sur…"  
House interrupts him "take care of Lise and the boys for me. Promise me."  
"I…I promise."  
"And, give her the ring. It's in my pocket."  
"No, you're gonna come out of this and you are going to do it yourself."

Then House's hears Cuddy voice "oh my god! What happened?"  
Cuddy was in a meeting with Stacy when she got word that House is being rushed to the OR.  
Cameron explains "he has been shot twice."  
Cuddy asks "Where?"  
Cameron calmly replies "one in the neck and one in the stomach. The surgery team is now waiting for him in the OR."  
House keeps calling "Lise…Lise…" until he finally sees Cuddy within his line of vision.  
Cuddy walks along the gurney as they wheel him to the operating room.  
She holds his hands and whisper "I'm here Greg. Everything is gonna be alright."  
House replies "Lise…Lise, I love you. Marry me, please."  
Cuddy is doubly shock and replies "I love you too. We'll need to get you well first, and then we'll talk about the wedding, okay?"  
"Please tell the boys I love them."  
"I will. You better hang-in there; don't think I'll let you get away without giving me the wedding of my dreams."  
House smiles and says "I love you Lise. I promise to give you that wedding that you deserve."  
"I love you too Greg."  
As they are entering the OR, House grabs Cuddy closer, whisper "I want Ketamine." He kisses her tenderly and longingly; if this is the last thing he does he wants her to forever remember it. All the staff (_including Stacy_) who witnessed the exchange between the two are simply awed. They have never seen that side of the Dean or the Diagnostician before.

***

Jake walks into his dad's hospital room after taking the first shot-eye flight out of Boston.  
He asks Wilson "I though they've successfully removed the bullets, why is he still in a coma?"  
Wilson replies "your mom placed him in a ketamine-induced coma. He'll be in a coma for at least five days. It allows the nervous system to reboots itself."  
"Ketamine treatment is not yet FDA approved. How did Mom secure the drug protocol on the treatment?"  
"Apparently for the last couple of months, your parents have been in close contact with the German physician who administered the original drug protocol. And somehow your mom was also able to acquire enough amount of ketamine to go through with the treatment."  
"You are skeptical about the treatment?"  
"There are numerous risks to this treatment. He could have a stroke or suffer other complications while in a coma. And the study shows that it is only effective half of the time; plus they don't know how long will it last."  
"That's 50% more than he ever had. To my dad, it's definitely worth the gamble."  
"To your dad, yes. To your mom, I don't know if she made the right call."  
"She has never forgiven herself for going against dad's wishes during his infraction treatment. Do you think she'll make the same mistake again?"  
"I understand. That's why we choose our love ones to be our health care proxy, that they may make decisions base on our interest. Doctors are supposed to provide patient with best medical advice for treatment."  
"And mom acted as the love one, the health care proxy and his doctor."  
Wilson nods and replies "she might lose both her license and her job if the word gets out."  
"It's not going to get out! If Mom loses her license, we'll sue the hospital for failure to provide better security for dad's workplace."  
Wilson shakes his head and replies "Yup! You're definitely the spawn of Cuddy and House."

***

After a week in coma, House wakes up to see his whole family around him—Lise, Jake, the twins, Wilson and even the ducklings. He tries talking but notices that his throat is very sore so he grabs Cuddy's hand. He signals for her to come closer and he whispers "why is everyone here? Am I dead yet?"  
Cuddy smiles and replies "no, everyone's just anxious to see you wake up. Do you feel any pain?"  
House tries checking himself and replies "I'm tired but I don't feel anything."  
Cuddy leans and kisses him on the forehead "it's okay, Greg! The Ketamine treatment could be working now."  
He kisses her back and asks "I'm thirsty. Can I have a cold drink?"  
Cuddy nods and just when she turns around little Charlie wiggles from Jake and yells "Dada wuv."  
Cuddy smiles and carries Charlie over to House so the little boy can kiss his Daddy.  
House smiles at his son as Charlie gives him a sloppy wet kiss on his left cheek. When Charlie reaches to grab his dad's right cheek, all the other doctors immediately jump to caution the boy from touching House's neck. But House raises his hands to signal them not to worry. They all give each other a puzzled look. Jake interprets "I think what Dad is trying to say is that Charlie wants to kiss his boo-boo to make it better."

***

_**Two months after  
**_House is feeling like a brand new man, he has been pain free for almost two months. Before today, his daily routine includes a morning jog with the twins, coming home to take a shower while Lina feeds the boys their lunch, drops the twins in daycare so he can attend physical therapy or massage therapy sessions. Afterwards, he'll have coffee with Wilson, pick-up the boys in daycare and take them to the park. After they come home, he and Lina feed the twins' dinner, then its bath time. He's been enjoying his newfound mobility by doing all the physical activities that he has been deprived of for the last six years. Cuddy is especially aware of House's newfound need try new things (_and positions_).

_**Flashback from a week ago  
**__House is in a frisky mood again as he tries to convince Cuddy to do it on the kitchen counter.  
"Greg, haven't you had enough yet?"  
"Nope, I have six years to make up for. Besides, I need to practice. I think both our moms will be very disappointed if they find out we're not applying all that we've learned from the book they gave us."  
"Greg, it'll only work if I'm off the pill or you're not wearing condom."  
"I say I'm practicing. I'm not ready to have another spawn yet."  
"If we want another one, we'll have to do it soon rather than later."  
"I want to enjoy the twins for a couple of more years."  
"I know you do but I'm already 36. The odds of conceiving will get harder if we wait longer."  
"Don't worry; we'll practice every day for the next 2 years. By the time we're ready, it'll be a cinch. Unless of course, if you really want us to have a baby girl soon."  
__**End of Flashback**__  
_

Last Christmas, Blythe and Emma gave Greg a very interesting gift that the ladies bought from a curious shop that they visited in London. It was an illustrative book on how to conceive a baby girl—complete with pictures of various sexual positions. Both Harry and John find the thought of their sexagenarian wives rummaging through the shelves of a sex shop very amusing.

"I don't know. If we have another one, I just want her to be healthy."  
House smiles at the fact that Cuddy is referring to their future baby as a 'her,' he knows how much she wants a baby girl so he says "you know, this will our very first planned pregnancy. Are you sure you can handle Mr. Happy 24/7?"  
Cuddy seductively smiles and replies "I can, if you can."

***

Cuddy is busy working on paperwork when Stacy knocks on her office door.  
Stacy asks "hey, am I too early for our meeting?"  
"No, not at all. You're just in time."  
"So, how's everything? I haven't seen Greg, is he doing okay?"  
"He's doing great. He's running around like he's twenty-something. He's actually returning to work today."  
Stacy spots a familiar ring on Cuddy's left hand and asks "oh, is that an engagement ring?"  
Cuddy beamingly smiles and replies "yes, Greg finally popped the question last night."  
"Oh, does it have the inscription 'For my One and Only PP'?"  
Cuddy is shocked by Stacy's accurate statement. She thinks to herself "Did Greg originally gave this ring to Stacy? I just assume that PP is Party Pants, what if it meant something else for him and Stacy. Oh god, I'm so stupid. Maybe he hasn't gotten over Stacy."

_**TBC**_


	35. Chapter 35

**Author's Note #1-** _A very big thank you to my wonderful beta **Ceciilee,** who just never ceases to amaze me with her patience and editorial skills.  
_

***

"Oh, does it have the inscription 'For my One and Only PP'?"  
Cuddy is shocked by Stacy's accurate statement. She thinks to herself "Did Greg originally give this ring to Stacy? I just assume that PP is Party Pants, what if it meant something else for him and Stacy. Oh god, I'm so stupid. Maybe he hasn't gotten over Stacy."  
Stacy says "I accidentally came across that ring when Greg and I were together."  
When Cuddy fixes her gaze at Stacy a second longer than she intended, Stacy immediately added "I don't think he bought it for me because I saw it shortly after I moved in. And you know we only dated for only a week before I moved-in."  
Cuddy nods and can't help but breathe a sigh of relief and says "oh…of course."  
Stacy says "I've always assumed that it's a family heirloom; maybe from his grandmother?"  
Cuddy shrugs her shoulder and replies "I didn't get a chance to ask. We had a bit of a family emergency last night."  
"Oh, I'm sorry. What happened?"  
"Our little Charlie slipped and got a nasty cut near his eyebrow."  
"Oh god! Is he alright?"  
"He's fine now but it's just different when you see blood spurting out of your own son's tiny face."  
"Oh, that must be terrifying"  
"It was. When we arrived at the ER, he just kept crying and didn't want the attending to touch him. Greg ended up stitching Charlie himself."  
Cuddy and Stacy proceed with their meeting without fanfare.

Meanwhile, House walks into his office without a cane but carrying one twin on one arm, his backpack on the other and the other twin in tow. And like their Dad, the twins sport a short haircut and are dress in blazer; rock t-shirt, blue jeans and Nike Shox. The boys are now eighteen-months old; filled with boundless energy and curiosity. Except for a little problem pronouncing the letter L, their very verbal communication skills are very advanced for their age.

House greets his staff "Good morning kids. Have you been behaving while daddy was away?"  
The ducklings are pleasantly surprised to see their boss back.  
Foreman nods at House and says "Welcome Back!"  
Cameron who still in shocked at seeing her boss says "It's great to see you. You look great! Oh my god, you're walking without a cane."  
Chase is also excited to see House that he actually pats him on the shoulder. But before House can say anything, he notices that Charlie has pat Chase's hand back.  
Chase notices Charlie's stitches and asks "oh, did somebody have a boo-boo?"  
Ethan answers "Charwie has an owie."  
Cameron says "awww" she asks Charlie "does it hurt?"  
Charlie shakes his head while Ethan offers "Daddy fixed Charwie's boo-boo."  
Cameron replies "of course; your daddy is a good doctor."  
Ethan puts him two thumbs up and says "my daddy is the best doctor in the worwd."  
House winks at Ethan and asks the twins "are you two ready to go play with your friends at the daycare?"  
Ethan says "yes" while Charlie shakes his head and clings to his dad's neck tighter.  
Ethan looks at his brother and says "it's okay. Ethan wuv you."  
All three ducklings simultaneously say "awww, that's so cute."

***

After finally convincing little Charlie that everything will be alright, House drops the boys at the daycare and heads straight to his best friend's office.  
"Hey"  
Wilson looks up, smiles and greets him "Good to see you back House!"  
"Yeah, yeah, yeah"  
"So, you popped the question last night?"  
"Yeah, sortta."  
"Oh no! Don't tell me you screwed it up again?"  
"No, we went out to dinner as planned."  
"Was she suspicious when you took her to a nice restaurant?"  
"I may have let it slipped that you're back on cradle-snatching again."  
"It was just one time. And she looked much older than her actual age."  
House rolls his eyes and continues "anyway, I think Lise spent most of dinner waiting for me to get out of my chair to bust your date."  
"Well, you've done it before**."**  
"By the time I suggested taking a walk after dinner, she was more like consoling me because I hadn't had the opportunity of interrupting your date."  
Wilson starts laughing and asks "so you took her by the lake like we planned?"  
House nods and says "yeah, went down on one knee and ask her to marry me."  
"So far, so good. Then what happened?"  
"She was a little shocked. She was speechless for a few seconds; tears started falling and no response. I was going through the periodic table of elements in my head and saying to myself 'this can't be happening again.'"  
"Holy shit! She didn't give you an answer?"  
"She finally said 'yes' after what felt like a lifetime."  
Wilson breathes a big sigh of relief but House continues "as she's wearing the ring and I'm about to tell her the story about the ring, her cell phone rings."  
"Who?"  
"It was Lina, informing us that little Charlie slipped and hit his head on edge of the kitchen cabinet door. He got a nasty cut on the side of his right eyebrow and was bleeding profusely so she called 9-1-1."  
"Oh god! Is Charlie alright?"  
"Yeah, we scrambled immediately to meet them at the ER. By this time, Lise was already on the phone with god knows who making sure that the someone was by the door ready to care for her baby boy."  
"Did Charlie require stitches?"  
"Yup! I had to suture it myself. They were able to stop the bleeding but little Charlie wouldn't stop crying and just plain refused to let the attending touch him."  
"How many?"  
House shrugs his shoulder and replies "six stitches. Now, you'll have another way of telling my boys apart."  
"Wow! You and Lisa definitely had a memorable night."  
"I think that's an understatement if I ever heard one."  
"I assumed that you guys never got around to wedding date or anything like that."  
House shakes his head and replies "nope. That's Lise' department. I will simply show up in my tux and answer all questions that are address to me with 'I do'."  
"Sounds like a plan. I guess, you're not really in a hurry."  
"Actually, I'm hoping to get this over with because I want to start working on our next project."  
"What's that?"  
"Spawn #4!"  
"Seriously?"  
House nods and replies "yup. The soon-to-be Mrs. House thinks her biological clock is about to go off."  
"I'm really happy for you, but you know you have to slow down a bit."  
"What do you mean?"  
"What will happen when the pain in your leg comes back?"  
"I'm not going to spend my days worrying about things that could go wrong. I could get hit by a bus while crossing the street or get an infraction while golfing. Oh yeah, I've had that before."  
"I'm not saying that you shouldn't enjoy this moment with your family. All I'm saying is don't pin your hopes so high that you'll end up plunging into depression when the Ketamine stop working."  
"I'm not relying solely on the Ketamine treatment. I'm still attending my PT, I exercise and lately lots of sexercise."  
Wilson simply shakes his head and replies "well, if you put it that way then god's speed."

***

**_A week later  
_**Jake is only home for less than two days from school when he gets into a motorcycle accident.  
A passerby found him unconscious and called an ambulance. He wakes up to see someone shining a penlight at his eyes, so he asks "what are you doing?"  
Cameron replies "I'm examining you."  
"Why?"  
"You were in a motorcycle accident. You were knocked unconscious."  
Jake feels a little dizzy but nothing severe that requires hospitalization. He gently sits on the hospital bed and notices the little scuff on his arms. He thinks to himself 'thank god, I was wearing my thick leather jacket or the gash would have been worst.'  
He is about to stand up when Cameron asks him "where do you think you're going?"  
"I'm going home. I'm sure there are lots of sick people out there who need you more than me."  
"Sure but none of them have the Dean for a mother or my boss for a father."  
"I'm fine. My parents don't need to know I'm here."  
"Are you kidding me? I can't discharge a minor without properly informing their parents."  
"Oh come on. I'll be eighteen next week."  
"Then, you should have had the accident next week."  
Jake rolls his eyes and replies "ok, can you just call my dad then?"

**Author's Note #2 - **_We are heading towards the end of this story (MSB2). I have one more major story arc and I'm calling it a day. If you enjoy or like __this fic, please drop me a note. I love hearing your thoughts--it encourages me to write more and sometimes it even triggers ideas for the next story line ;-)  
_


	36. Chapter 36

**Author's Note #1-** _A very big thank you to my wonderful beta __**Ceciilee**__,__ who just never ceases to amaze me with her patience and editorial skills._

_As I mentioned before, I have at least 2 (maybe 3) chapters left. I hope you click on the "Review this story/chapter" button at the bottom of this page and send me your feedback. _

***

As Jake spots his frantic parents walking into the ER, he immediately turns to Cameron "I thought you said you called my dad?"  
Cameron replies "yeah, but he wasn't in his office so I called your mom instead. And as luck would have it, your dad was with your mom."  
Jake glares at Cameron and calls her "Tattle-tale!"  
Cameron smiles and snaps back "Cry-baby!"  
Cuddy immediately goes to Mommy mode and starts fussing about her son.  
"Are you okay honey?"  
"I'm fine Mom. I just hit a patch of gravel and took a spill. Nothing to be worried about."  
Cuddy looks at his arms and asks "Does it hurt?"  
"It's nothing Mom. It's just a gash."  
As Cuddy asks "Are you sure?" she notices House takes a step closer to their son.  
Jake replies "I'm just a little embarrass for taking a spill but I'm fine."  
When House tries to smell his son's breath and examine his eyes.  
Cuddy asks "Greg, what are you doing?"  
Jake interrupts his dad "I'm cool Dad. I didn't take any alcohol or drugs."  
Cameron supplies "the tox screen will be available in a few hours."  
When House frown at Cameron, she adds "he asked for it. He thought you both would want to know."  
Jake sarcastically adds "I asked for a lot of things but you conveniently agreed with only the tox screen."  
House signals for Cameron to leave the room.  
Before Cuddy could say anything, her pager goes off. She takes a quick look at it and informs both men that it's the daycare. She tells House to take care of Jake while she figures out what's wrong with the twins.  
Cuddy addresses her son "I need to go honey but your Dad will take care of you, okay?"  
"Sure Mom."  
After Cuddy leaves the room, House gives his son a penetrating look.  
He asks his son "what really happened?"  
"What do you mean Dad?"  
"Don't lie to me Jake. You've been riding that bike for years and never once have you fallen or even been close to taking a spill. You know why?"  
Jake looks at his Dad and shrugs his shoulder.  
"Because you're too careful and responsible; you got that from your Mom. So, why would a kid who's too damn careful slide off the road in good weather and no apparent cars around him?"  
"I don't know Dad. I can't remember what happened."  
"You don't remember what cause the accident?"  
Jake stammers "I remember flashing my brake light when I slowed down to get off the exit ramp. But, I can't remember anything after that."  
"You blacked out?"  
Jake nods and replies "I must have. I don't remember anything Dad."  
"Is this the first time you've experienced a blackout?"  
"You think not remembering is a symptom?"  
"It depends. Did the accident cause the blackout or did the blackout cause the accident?"  
Jake admits to his dad that he has experienced blackouts a couple of times in the past week.  
"I just ignored it. I thought I must have overslept because I was too tired."  
"Where were you when they happened?"  
"I was in my apartment both times. I just remember waking up with a pounding headache. I simply couldn't recall anything that happened before I fell asleep."  
"You can't account for how many hours?"  
"The first time, it was about 2 hours and second time was about 30 minutes."  
House nods and tells his son that he's keeping him for more test and observation.  
"I'm sure it's nothing Dad."  
"I hope so too. If not, we'll fix it."

***

House writes on the white board: "18 year-old male, motorcycle accident, sudden blackouts."  
Chase asks "where's the patient's file?"  
"You don't need one. Everything you need to know is on the board."  
Foreman says "which isn't much. I'd say some brat out partying with his friends, most likely drunk or high on drugs while driving his bike."  
Cameron answers "He was neither. His tox screen came back clean."  
Chase gives Cameron a puzzled look and asks "how do you know that when he didn't give us the file?"  
Cameron replies "because he's talking about his son. While I was doing my rotation in the ER this morning, Jake was brought in for a minor bike injury."  
House asks Cameron "ever heard of doctor-client privilege?"  
"Yeah, they'll know it soon enough. Besides, you need all the help you can get to solve this puzzle for you."  
Before House can argue back, Chase asks "is it true? We're talking about Jake?"  
House nods and replies "yes, but I don't want Lis…Cuddy to know that we're examining Jake."  
Cameron asks "Why? Jake is her son, she has a right to know if her son is ill."  
"When you and the wombat here" House points at Chase "decide to have spawns of your own then you come back and lecture me how to handle my family."  
Both Chase and Cameron blush at the thought of having a wombat family of their own.  
House continues "Cuddy doesn't need to know until we are sure of what's wrong with Jake. I don't want her to worry about him. Do I make myself clear?"  
All three ducklings nod their heads.  
House erases the white board to only show "sudden blackout."  
After a few heated rounds of DDx, they've added the following items on the white board "Epilepsy, Arrhythmias, Autonomic neuropathy, Adams-Stokes, Wolf-and Parkinson-White syndrome, Transient Ischemic Attack, etc." House looks at the board one more time and summarizes "it's either cardiovascular or neurological." He tells his staff that Jake is in the room next to the coma guy under the name of 'Ekaj Esouh' (_Jake House spelled backward_). He orders them to run additional blood work, stress test, CT, MRI of the brain, EEC and ECG on his son.  
"Call me if you find anything or after you've completed the test."  
Cameron asks "Where are you going?"  
"I'm going home to check on the twins."  
"What's wrong with the twins?"  
House shrug his shoulders "the usual fever and crankiness after they get their scheduled shots."  
The ducklings know better than to question House's parenting or his diagnostic skills, so they leave as ordered.

***

House gets home to see Cuddy, Lina and Lina's daughter Elsa fussing over the twins. Cuddy has made arrangement for Elsa to attend PPTH's hospital-based registered nursing program that emphasize clinical experience. It's a two-year program and afterward, Elsa can prepare for the Registered Nursing Licensing Examination. But more importantly, Lina now has her daughter to keep her company. Lina is simply beside herself and has been smiling non-stop since her daughter arrived from the Philippines about a week ago.

When Charlie spots House, he immediately jumps off the sofa chair and runs over to give his Dad a kiss and a hug. Charlie is wearing nothing but his pull up pants and start's telling his dad "I'm a big boy now Daddy. I went potty by mysewf."  
"Fantastic! Great job Charlie!"  
House looks over to the ladies and asks "So, why is my son running around in his diaper?"  
Charlie immediately corrects his dad "No! Diapers are for babies. I'm a big boy daddy."  
Cuddy who is carrying a very lethargic looking Ethan on her arms answers "Greg, don't use the word D-I-A-P-E-R around the boys. The twins are in a kick where they want to be referred to as big boys now."  
House rolls his eyes "when did this happen?"  
The staff at the daycare said that they noticed the two acting differently after they have a baby addition at the center. Cuddy asks her son "Charlie, can you tell Daddy about your new friend at the daycare center?"  
Charlie's eyes light-up and reply "I'm a big boy hewper to Izzy. She's a baby and needs my hewp."  
Both House and Cuddy give each other the look as if to ease their concerns that the twins will be okay if they have another baby.  
Charlie pulls his dad's arms and says "Daddy pick me up, pwease."  
House smirks and asks his son "I thought you're already a big boy. Big boy can walk by themselves, right?"  
Charlie nods his head and replies "I wuv you Daddy. I just wanna give you a huggy."  
Both parents laugh at their son's response. After House picks up his son, Cuddy gives little Charlie a peck on his cheek and says "Mommy and Daddy love you too. You, Ethan and Jake will always be Daddy and Mommy's babies."  
Cuddy immediately turns to House "speaking of Jake, did you discharge him yet? How is he? Where is he?"  
House replies "yeah, he's hanging out with my team right now. They might go bowling tonight or something."  
"That's odd. I didn't even know Jake bowls. Should he be going out so soon after his accident?"  
"Lise, Jake will be eighteen next week. You can't baby him forever. Beside, he's with three doctors. I think the ducklings know how to take care of him if anything happens."  
Charlie interrupts "the ducklings! Homey, Wombat, and Camster."  
Cuddy yells "House!"

House immediately changes the topic and asks "so, is anybody going to answer why my son is running around in only his undies?"  
Lina replies "Dr. House, it took us two hours to get him to wear those pull ups."  
Cuddy explains "they're teaching the boys dexterity skills at the daycare these past few weeks. So, they've been zipping, tying, lacing, snapping, and buttoning their clothes. I think your son just had about enough of it and thinks that if he isn't wearing anything, then he doesn't need to do it."  
House gives Charlie a high-five and says "way to stick it to the Man. Fight the power!"  
Charlie mimics his dad "fight the power!"  
Ethan smiles and adds "powerpuff gir(l)s!"  
Charlie replies "Powerpuff girws! Bwossom, Bubbwes, and Buttercup."  
House shakes his head and says "okay boys. You lost Daddy already."  
Cuddy, Lina, and Elsa just start laughing. Elsa supplies "Dr. House, the 'Powerpuff Girls' is a cartoon show. They're names are Blossom, Bubbles, and Buttercup."  
Cuddy smile and replies "where do they get these things?"  
"I think they watch too much girly TV at the daycare. I'll need to talk to the daycare staff."  
"No, you're not talking to any of their daycare provider. The last time you talk to one, she quit."  
"She was an id…"  
Cuddy immediately stops House from saying the word near the twins.  
House continues "you should be thankful that I gave her a piece of my mind. Or else our kids would have continued to get daily exposure of S-T-U-P-I-D-I-T-Y. We're talking about our kids here, Lise; they have the brain power to rule the world. We can't risk endangering their destiny of world domination." And then House gives her an evil laugh that Charlie proceeds to imitate.  
Cuddy simply rolls her eyes and before she can say anything. Lina gives her a signal informing her that Ethan is finally asleep. Cuddy quietly leaves the family room and heads to the twins' room. After seeing Charlie yawning, Lina gently takes the boy away from his dad as well.

House receives a phone call around nine at night from Foreman. He informs him that all of Jake's cardiovascular and neurological tests came back clean.  
Foreman says "The blood works will not be ready until tomorrow morning. Do you want me to drive Jake home?"  
House replies "No, I'll pick him up. And leave all the results on my desk; I want to review them myself."

**_TBC_**

**Author's Note #2-** _For those of you who live in the US, Happy Martin Luther King Day!!!  
In honor of the inauguration of our 44th President tomorrow, I might be persuaded to have two updates. So keep them feedback coming… ;-)  
_


	37. Chapter 37

**Author's Note #1-** _I would like to personally dedicate this chapter_ _to my wonderful beta __**Ceciilee**__, who has patiently went through each and every chapters of this fic. You're truly a joy to work with! Your wonderful insights and quick turnaround is greatly appreciated by both my readers and specially yours truly._

***

House walks into his office about 15 minutes after nine o'clock. Foreman hands him all the test results. Meanwhile, Cameron drops a plastic bag beside Jake's feet and says "I thought you might want your clothing back."  
Jake sporting a scrub is playing his Dad's Game boy at the lounge chair, nods at Cameron and mumbles "thank you."  
Cameron walks over to join Foreman by House's desk.  
House asks "where's the wombat?"  
Cameron replies "he's at the lab. He thinks he can finish the blood work by tonight."  
Foreman states "as I said, everything looks normal. Syncope (_blackouts_) can be cause by a lot of things from stress, pain, overheating, dehydration or exhaustion."  
House looks over to his son and sees Jake putting on his motorcycle jacket.  
Cameron argues "maybe Jake was correct. The previous blackout has nothing to do with what happened this morning."  
House shakes his head and replies "it just doesn't make sense."  
Few minutes after Chase walks-in with the results of the blood test, Jake collapses and has a seizure.

After the team stabilizes Jake, House calls Cuddy to inform her of what had happened.  
"What's wrong with him Greg?"  
"I don't know Lise. I'm working on it."  
"I'm coming in."  
"You don't have to. I don't want you to disrupt the twins' sleep."  
"I'll call Lina. She won't mind keeping an eye on the twins for the night."  
"Ok, I'm gonna get back to work."  
"Greg?"  
"Yes, Lise?"  
"Please don't let anything bad happen to our son."  
"Of course."  
"And Greg?"  
"Lise?"  
"I love you very much. I forgot to say that to Jake this morning."  
"Lise, he knows that and you can still tell him that every day."  
"We almost lost him twice today."  
"We're not going to lose him. And Lise? I love you too."

***

Cuddy is keeping vigil by Jake's bedside when he wakes up.  
She asks her son "how are you feeling honey?"  
"Tired," he sees his surrounding and asks, "did I blackout again?"  
Cuddy nods and replies "you had a seizure. Your Dad and his team are working on a diagnosis."  
"Mom?"  
"What's wrong honey?"  
"I can't feel anything. My legs…my arms… Mom, I can't move anything."  
House and the team confirm that Jake just suffered from muscle paralysis.

After about five hours of going through all the results over and over again. Chase falls off his chair while dozing off. House yells at him "if you can't be productive, why don't you just go home."  
Chase replies "I'm sorry. It's already three in the morning."  
Cameron defends Chase and says "He's right. We've been looking at these results for awhile."  
Before House can reply, Cuddy walks-in and tells the team to "go home. Thank you for staying late maybe a quick nap will help refresh everyone's mind."  
An exasperated House replies "have you gone insane? Our son could be dead in a few hours."  
Cuddy and House continues bickering back and forth while the team packs up to call it a day.  
House looks over Cuddy and sees Chase putting on his jacket. Then House gets his "aha" moment. He shouts over Cameron and asks "you gave Jake his jacket shortly before he had seizure, right?"  
Cameron nods and replies "yeah. Why?"  
"It's the only thing that ties both incidents. He was wearing it during the accident and before the seizure" House immediately picks up the blood results, reads them and orders his team "test the jacket for poison. His RBC and plasma cholinesterase levels all points to organophosphate poisoning."

As the team tests the jacket, House orders the nurse scrubbed his son down to ensure that the poison is off his skin. Afterward, House and Cuddy visit their son's room.  
Jake asks his dad "What's wrong with me?"  
"You had organophosphate poisoning."  
"Can it be treated?"  
"Yeah, you'll have to take cocktail drugs but you'll be okay."  
Jake breathes a sigh of relief "what's the treatment?"  
"Atropine, 2-PAM and Diazepam."  
"Dad, how did I get poisoned?"  
"I don't know. Have you been doing a little gardening in Boston?"  
"No, I don't even own a plant in my apartment."  
Cuddy kisses her son and tells him "don't worry about it now. Your dad and I will think of something tomorrow but now we want you to rest."  
Jake nods and says "thanks Mom."  
"And Jake, your Dad and I want you to know that we love you very much."  
Jake smiles at his mom and replies "You don't have to tell me that because I always know."  
House stays with his son overnight, Cuddy goes home to the twins, while the ducklings are given rest of the weekend off.

***

As Wilson is walking into the hospital lobby to catch up with paperwork, he bumps into Nurse Brenda who informs him of what happened to Jake last night.  
Wilson pops his head in Jake's room and sees Jake sleeping while House is reading a journal at a bedside chair.  
Wilson greets his friend "hey," while House nods back.  
"I heard what happened. Is he going to be okay?"  
"Yeah. He'll need just a few days to recover but he'll be fine."  
"You should have called me last night. I would have been able to help babysit the twins or something."  
"I didn't need you last night, but are you up for a road trip tomorrow?"  
"Huh… Where? Why?"  
"Boston. We need to retrace Jake's steps and find out where he got poisoned."  
"How do you know that he didn't get it here in Jersey?"  
"Because he had two other blackouts a few days before he came home."  
"How did it cross state lines?"  
"It was on his jacket."  
"Is Lisa okay with the trip?"  
"Why not? I saw the symptoms, diagnosed the problem and recommended the treatment. The only missing piece is where did he get the poison?"  
Wilson rolls his eyes and replies "you and your puzzle."

***

The duo arrives in Boston on Sunday morning. Their first stop is the Shattuck house, they visit Jake's old apartment unit. Since the semester hasn't started, the unit is still empty.  
Wilson looks around and says "damn! This is bigger than my apartment."  
"I know and the rent is higher than my previous mortgage for my townhouse too."  
"Seriously?"  
"Yup! More than two grand a month."  
"Whatever happened to those rinky-dink single rooms where you have to share bathrooms with 20 other people?"  
"They're still available but we wanted Jake to experience apartment living so..."  
Wilson shrugs his shoulder and says "I don't see anything in here that would need pesticides."  
House nods and replies "I think we need to interview people."  
"Whatever happens to everybody lies?"  
"People lie about themselves but they love to dish out the dirt on someone else."  
"You're going to ask people to rat on your son?"  
House smirks and replies "think of it as a fact-finding mission."

House first 'informant' is Jason the football guy. They chitchat for awhile then House mentions Jake's condition. Jason immediately offers "if there's anything I can do to help Jake, just let me know."  
"I greatly appreciate that. Walk me through Jake's daily routine."  
"He's usually in class by eight and I know his work doesn't start until around three and he's usually back in his apartment by eight-thirty at night."  
Wilson asks "how do you know all these things?"  
Jason replies "Dr. House asked me to keep an eye on him. Beside, Jake is a creature of habit. He has a set schedule so it's not like I have to follow him around."  
House encourages Jason "go on continue."  
"Well, that's his normal schedule Mon-Wed-Fri. He doesn't work at Dr. Church's lab on Tue-Thu since he has class at MIT."  
"What does he do on weekend?"  
"On Saturday mornings, rain or shine he rows by the Charles River. I know that for a fact because he borrows my pick-up truck to haul his rowboat. Meanwhile, he spends most of his Saturday night down by Wally's Café. He jams with local musicians."  
Wilson asks "what type of music do they play?"  
"It's a jazz and blues clubs. Jake usually jams in on the piano but I've seen him played the guitar during blues night."  
Then House inquires about Sundays.  
"Jake and his girl attend Mass, and then they do grocery, laundry and stuff like that."  
Wilson raises his brow at the thought of the son of an atheist and a Jew going to mass on Sundays.  
House asks Jason if he noticed anything different about Jake's schedule in the last two weeks.  
"Yeah, he moved out of his apartment two weeks ago."  
Both House and Wilson look at each other. House asks "you mean a week ago?"  
"No, semester ended last week but he moved out two weeks ago."  
"Did he move his stuff into a storage place?"  
"Not this summer. He and his girlfriend just got an apartment a couple of blocks from here."  
"Really? The girlfriend's name is?"  
"Marie, she's the hot Swiss blond girl that used to live next door from him."  
"Yes, I remember her. The one Jake was helping with her English?"  
Jason smirks and nods "her English is just fine, but she's really hot. Jake is like every guy's hero around here."  
House can't help but smile. He asks "are guys envious enough to harm him?"  
"Like what?"  
"I don't know. Maybe slip a mickey on his drinks or something?"  
"No! Jake is the cool dude who rides a bike, dates the hottest babe on campus and yet, he's very approachable. You know what I mean?"  
House nods "do you know if Marie is here for the summer?"  
"Yeah, she works at the University's arboretum."

As Wilson is driving towards the arboretum, he begins laughing.  
House asks "what's so funny?"  
Wilson replies "this whole thing. I bet you're now wondering if you really know your son?"  
"I know my son fine. Didn't you keep things from your parents when you were in med school?"  
"Yeah, but not about moving in with my girlfriend or changing my religion."  
"I practically moved into Lise's dorm room shortly after we met and I haven't been to church since I left home for school. And I'm certain that my parents still don't know those two facts up to now."  
Wilson smiles and replies "the apple doesn't fall far from the tree, indeed."  
"However, how Lise is going to take this will be another story."

_**TBC**_


	38. Chapter 38

_**Disclaimer:**__ All rights belong to Fox and David Shore.  
__**Author's Notes:**__ Special thanks to my beta __**Ceciilee,**__ for continuing to do such an awesome job editing this fic._

***

House and Wilson's next stop is 'The Arnold Arboretum of Harvard University.'  
Wilson inquires about Marie at the visitor's center and the woman gives him a dirty look.  
"Aren't you too old for Marie?"  
"Oh, no I'm not interested in her that way. Actually, I've never met her before."  
"Then why do you need to see her?"  
"My friend" Wilson points to House who is chatting with one of the tour guide. "Dr. House's son is Marie's boyfriend. He is sick and we need to ask her a few questions."  
"Oh my god! Is Jake okay? Let me call Marie immediately."  
After informing Marie that Jake's father is in the lobby. The woman apologizes to Wilson and says "we do get a few men harassing Marie so we try to shoo them away."  
Wilson arches his brow and says "really? That's a bit scary."  
The woman nods her head and replies "tell me about it. Anyway, she should be here in a few minutes."

As is if an angel has just descended from heaven, Wilson is simply stun at the sight he is seeing across the room. House notices his best friend with his mouth open so he follows his eyes and sees a gorgeous blond girl walking down the stairs.  
House elbows Wilson and says "stop drooling or you'll have to wait for me in the car."  
Wilson snaps out of his trance and replies "oh sorry. Was I that obvious?"  
House nods and says "atta boy! Jake sure knows how to pick em."  
"Fuck! Jake is my new hero!"

Marie is tall (_about 5'9''_) with a long blond hair and a perfect super-model body. She has a gorgeous angelic face and beautiful smile. Upon seeing the duo, she immediately walks over to House and asks "Dr. House?"  
House extends his hand and introduces himself "Greg House. I'm Jake's Dad."  
Marie gives House a warm embrace and kisses him on both cheeks. In a beautiful Swiss accent, Marie introduces herself "I'm Elisabeth Marie Picard. You can call me Marie." She smiles and adds "I can see the strong physical resemblance between you and Jake."  
House smirks and replies "it's nice to finally meet you Marie, I've heard so much about you."  
He places his arms on Wilson's shoulder and introduces his friend "this is James Wilson."  
Marie greets Wilson the same way as she did House and says "it's so nice to meet you Dr. Wilson. Jake speaks of you quite often."  
Wilson nervously puts his hands behind his neck and stammers "hi."  
House rolls his eyes and quickly asks Marie "do you have a moment?"  
"Of course. Is everything alright? Is this about Jake?"  
"Yes, that's why I'm here. He suffered organophosphate poisoning. "  
"Oh my god! Is he going to alright?"  
"Yes, he's undergoing treatment right now. But we need to find out how he got poisoned."  
Marie heads towards the arboretum grounds and asks "OP is present in insecticides and herbicides among others. You think he may have gotten it here?"  
House nods and asks "did he come by and help plant around here?"  
Marie gives a small laugh and says "Jake may be a genius but he has 'black thumb' (_opposite of green thumb_). He once withered the bamboo that I asked him to plant-sit for a week."  
"We found traces of organophosphate on his leather jacket."  
"He normally picked me up when I have to stay late at the library but he hardly walked around the grounds of the arboretum. He prefers rowing by the Charles River."  
House asks Marie "I understand that you two moved-in to a new apartment about two weeks ago. Did he pick you up or visited you that week?"  
Marie thinks for a minute and replies "he came by and picked me for dinner but that was a week before he left. I was assigned to give the walking tour that day. It got chilly mid-way through the tour and he gave me his leather jacket."  
"Did you set it down anywhere where they might have treated pesticide on the ground?"  
"No, I wore the jacket the whole time. And the arboretum uses Integrated Pest Management (IPM) strategies that rely heavily on natural predators instead of using pesticides and herbicides."  
"Did you bring the jacket with you back to the Visitor center or did you hand it back to him?"  
"I gave it back to him when I came in to get my backpack." Marie pauses for a minute and adds "Actually, he never came inside because Joe asked if he could talk to Jake in private."  
"Who is Joe?"  
Marie turns around and points at the security guard. She asks "do you need to talk to Joe?"  
House shrugs his shoulder and replies "why not?"  
Marie introduces House and Wilson to Joe. She briefly informs Joe that Dr. House needs to ask a few questions about Jake."  
Joe asks House "so, you're the JMan's daddy?"  
House nods "yes, I'm Jake's Dad."  
"You got yourself a good kid. Uh huh. What can I do for you Doc?"  
House acknowledged Joe's statement and asks "about two weeks ago, Jake came by to pick up Marie and you asked to speak to Jake in private."  
Joe blushes and nods.  
"May I ask what did you have to ask him about?"  
Joe looks over to Marie and Wilson and says "excuse me, can I speak to the Doc in private?"  
Both Wilson and Marie nodded and move a few feet away from the two.  
Joe explains to House that he was asking Jake for medical advice about the itchiness in his groin area. "He told me that it's most likely a STD and that I should drop by the University clinic immediately to get it check. He told me that the clinic was free and what I have is probably easily treatable. I followed his advice and I'm doing much better."  
House asks "Do you remember if he was wearing a jacket when you were talking to each other?"  
"Nu uh. He ain't wearing it. Nu uh, the JMan was holding it."  
"How can you be so certain?"  
"Because he left it on one of them delivery trucks. By the time we saw it, he and Marie had already left. I called and left him a message that I placed it on one of them lost and found plastic bag and wrote his name on it. JMan picked it up about two or three day after. Uh huh."  
"Why the delivery truck?"  
"One of them delivery men tripped over something and Jake went over to check on him. Uh huh. I reckon he set his jacket on the truck when he examined him."  
"What type of delivery truck?"  
"It was one of them rental tree and plant delivery truck. They usually take care of the plant decorations during special events."  
House thanks Joe and walks over to Wilson and Marie.  
Marie asks "did you find the answer?"  
House nods and recounts what Joe had just told him.  
Wilson asks "so he picked up the pesticide from the plant farm rental truck?"  
House smirks and replies "am I the only one that sees the irony in the fact that arboretum rents plant for special events?"

***

After surviving through the emotional rollercoaster of almost losing the love of her life from a gunman and her eldest son from a health scare, there is nothing more that Cuddy wants than to indulge herself to the wedding of her dreams. In exchange for Cuddy promising not to drag House everywhere, he gives her carte blanche to make decisions on everything. Meaning, he forfeits the right to question or reject her choices on everything. With that Cuddy begins meticulously listing the things she needs for her wedding: the wedding gown, rings, invitations, flowers, cake, decorations, reception, menu, band, music, guest list, seating arrangement, photographer, videographer, etc. Every night after the twins have been tuck-in to bed, she reviews and adds a few things to her list. After three weeks of meticulously planning, she decides that it's time to turn her plan into action. First on the list are the wedding rings. She goes to five jewelry stores but can't decide what she wants so she decides to skip that item on the list for the time being. Second on her list is to select her wedding gown. Cuddy convinces her mom to fly-in one weekend to help her shop for her wedding dress. After trying on about ten dresses, Cuddy decides to skip that one too. She realizes that planning a wedding is not as fun as she thought it would be. Specially, when she sees how much everything costs. She would much rather use the money for her kids' college fund than spend it on her wedding.

House who has grown accustom to Cuddy reviewing her list or reading through bridal magazine every night, notices that she doesn't even open her wedding planner one night.  
House asks "so how's the wedding planning going?"  
Cuddy shakes her head and replies "Greg, will it be okay if we skip the wedding?"  
House takes off his reading glasses "Lise, what's wrong? I thought you wanted to plan the wedding of your dreams."  
"I did when I was younger. But with three kids, I just don't think it's practical. I'd rather help dress the twins than shop for a dress that I will only be wearing for a few hours. I'd rather enjoy baking cookies for my boys than trying on menus for the wedding reception. Don't get me wrong, I still love to shop for clothes but I like picking up stuff for my boys too. I guess, our priorities have shifted now that we have a family."**  
**"So do you wanna fly to Vegas for the weekend and get this over with?"  
"I want to get it over with, but I don't want to leave the boys."  
"Well, why don't we take them with us?"  
"Greg! Vegas isn't exactly kid-friendly."  
A smug smirk appears on House's face as he gets an idea.  
Cuddy asks "Why are you smiling?"  
"Because I have an idea."  
"Ok, are you going to share this idea?"  
"So, here's the deal. Let's go visit city hall tomorrow during our lunch break. Get our marriage license, blood test and buy our wedding rings. After three days, we can come back with the kids and get married."  
Cuddy smile and gives House a kiss on the lips "I love that plan!"  
House kisses her back and says "Good! Because, there's a part two to that plan."

_**Part two to House's plan will be revealed in the next and final chapter.  
**_

_**  
Author's Note #2:**__ This is the penultimate chapter for __Minor Setback II__. As always, I do appreciate all types of feedback, it's the only way I know if you love, hate or even reading this story ;-)_


	39. Chapter 39

_**Author's Note**__ -__I would like to personally dedicate this chapter __to my wonderful beta __Ceciilee__, who has patiently went through each and every chapters of this fic. _

_I also want to take this opportunity to thank everyone for sharing this adventure with me. For those who took the time to leave feedbacks and/or sent PMs, a big cyber hug to all of you. Your suggestions, encouragements, and support have made writing this fic a blast._

***

House enters Wilson's office and asks "so, what's the most romantic place you've ever taken your wives for a vacation?"  
Wilson raises his brow and replies "Paris. Are you planning your honeymoon?"  
House starts playing with Wilson's knick-knacks and answers "not quite. The wedding is off!"  
"What? What did you do?"  
"Why do you always assume that it's my fault?"  
"Because it always is. Seriously, why is the wedding off?  
"We've decided to elope. It's more practical etc. etc."  
"Oh, but you're still going through with the marriage?"  
"Of course."  
"So, you want to take Lisa somewhere romantic to compensate for the fact that she's not getting the wedding of her dreams that you promised her on your death bed?" Wilson's tone is accusatory and House doesn't like it because he knows that any other time Wilson's assumption would have been correct.  
"Yes, I want to take her somewhere special. But calling off the wedding was all her idea. I resent the fact that you still insist that it's somehow my fault."  
Wilson rolls his eyes and replies "as I said, Paris will be romantic."  
"I forgot. We'll need to take the boys with us since she won't enjoy the trip if the boys are not within 5 feet of her."  
"Well, that just narrows your choice between Dutch Wonderland and Disney World!"  
House raises his brows and replies "as long as that idiotic purple dinosaur is not there, that will do." He stands up and leaves the room.  
Wilson yells "House, it was a joke!" Wilson shakes his head and thinks to himself "why do I get the feeling that this is another disaster waiting to happen?"

***

_**A week later  
**_A very nervous Jake is loading the luggage on the mini-van and says "Mom is so going to kill us."  
House replies "no, she won't. We're going on our very first family vacation. Why would she get mad?"  
"Because she hates surprises. She likes to plan things so she can be prepared for any eventuality."  
"It's a vacation not a hurricane evacuation."  
"I know, but she likes everything to be organized. What if we missed something?"  
"Lina packed for the twins and I packed enough clothes for her to last a month. There's nothing to worry about."  
"I'm not worried about the twins. I'm worried about you packing mom's clothes."  
House wiggles his brows and asks "why? It's not like she is going to need anything besides all the Victoria Secret lingerie I packed for her."  
Jake replies "I'm so dead!"

"This is nothing compare to the shit that you're going to get when your Mom finds out that you've been playing 'house' with the blond bombshell."  
"It was purely for financial reason. We'll both save money on rent if we room together."  
"Is that what they call it these days? Roomie? Hmm…"  
"I'm serious Dad. She and her roommate just graduated from college. She was planning to go back home to Switzerland, but she won this fellowship so she needed to get an apartment quickly."  
"You had an extra bedroom in your apartment. Why didn't you offer her the other room?"  
"My lease ended after the spring semester. She needed an apartment for the whole year not just 9 months of the year. Besides, I don't have to worry about moving my stuff in storage or moving to another apartment."  
"How many bedrooms are there in your new apartment?"  
"One. But we're not that serious. I mean we don't let it affect our studies or our goals."  
"Really? Your mom and I used to be roomies too back in Michigan—one of her roommates didn't like it but we definitely got an A+ in Anatomy. Even had you to prove it!"  
"Marie and I are not ready for that. My main focus right now is med school. And Marie wants to pursue her PhD too. If after my residency and her doctorate, we still like each other then we'll take the next step. But for now, we're just enjoying each other's company."  
"How old is she?"  
"Twenty-three."  
"She's beautiful, she's smart and she's at that age. She's going to expect a commitment from you."  
"She knows that I like her and I'm not fooling around with anyone. But I'm only eighteen, I'm far from ready for a serious relationship."  
"Well, think about that fact every time you fertilize the flower bed."

***

A very nervous and worried-looking Wilson enters Cuddy's office.  
Cuddy looks up and says "Wilson is everything alright?"  
"Lisa, I'm so sorry to throw this on you at the last minute but you're my last hope."  
"What's wrong?"  
"Well, my mom is not feeling well and I really want to check up on her. But, I have a scheduled presentation tomorrow."  
"Ok, how can I help?"  
"I've prepared all the slide shows, the speech is ready and it just needs to be presented.**"**  
"Don't worry about your presentation. I'll take care of it."  
"You will do that for me?"  
"Sure, why wouldn't I?"  
"House said that you would never agree to leave the boys."  
"Well I do. It's not like your presentation is in Siberia or anything like that."  
"Of course, it's much closer than Siberia."  
"Huh? Where is it?"  
"It's in Orlando. Great weather and best of all you don't need a passport to enter."  
"Oh, I don't think I'll be…"  
Wilson quickly interrupts and says "Great! Your flight leaves in two hours. I've asked House to pack-up your suitcase and he'll meet you at Newark airport."  
"What? I don't get to say goodbye to the boys?"  
"Yeah, he thought you'd ask about them so he said he'll bring them all with your luggage."  
"Oh, ok."  
"Great! The cab is waiting for you outside."  
"What?"  
Wilson grabs Cuddy's purse and gently shoves her out the door and tells her "I owe you big time!"

***

As the cab driver drops Cuddy at terminal C in Newark airport, she reaches out for her cell phone to call House.  
"Greg? Where are you?"  
"Hmmm…behind you."  
Cuddy turns around just in time to react to the twins running over to give her hugs. The first thing she notices is the fact that the twins are carrying their travel backpacks. Then Greg has the twin umbrella stroller and Jake is dragging several luggage behind him.  
"What did you do pack my entire wardrobe?"  
House smirks and replies "nope, just all your lingerie."  
Cuddy rolls her eyes and proceeds to give all her boys kisses.  
Ethan pulls Cuddy's arms and asks "will Mickey Mouse be there Mommy?"  
Before Cuddy can reply, Charlie begins enumerating all the Disney characters.  
Cuddy who's a little overwhelmed looks over to her husband (_**yes, they finally tied the knot the day before!**_) for help.  
House shrugs his shoulder and replies "surprise! This is part two of my brilliant plan is…we're going on our very first family vacation."  
A very confused Cuddy asks "what? where? how about..? Oh, you set this up with Wilson?"  
House smiles and says "I would love to chat but our flight leaves in half hour." House asks the boys to sit on their stroller so they can head to the check-in counter.

The twins opted for window seats so House and Cuddy have the aisle between them in the first class section of the plane. Cuddy smiles and says "you know, I've never been to Disney World. My parents took me to Disney Land when I was seven or eight but never Disney World."  
House nods and hands her the travel itineraries.  
House is tying Ethan's shoelace when he feels a big thump hit his arm. Cuddy tries to lower her voice as she sternly asks her husband "have you gone insane? We are going to the Bahamas and Nassau? I don't have my passport and don't they have formal dinner on these cruises?"  
House smirks and replies "I brought your passport and who said we're getting out of our cabin? It's our vacation/honeymoon and I intend to take advantage of that."  
Cuddy rolls her eyes would have placed her hands on her hips if she were standing up before replying "Right, do you think Jake can handle the twins by himself?"  
House shakes his head and replies "Nope. That's why I called for reinforcement. Our moms will be joining us for the cruise part of our vacation."  
"Our moms?"  
House nods and smiles broadly as he sees his wife stand up to give him a kiss.  
Jake jokingly yells from the next row "oh for god's sake! Can't you two stop with the PDA? You'll both make everyone nauseous!"

***

House has booked the Disney 7-Night Land and Sea vacation package. They'll be enjoying the four Disney Theme Parks on the first three days of their vacation. Then, set sail on a 4-night cruise aboard a Disney cruise line.

The House clan begins their Disney adventure at the Magic Kingdom. Shortly after entering the park, the twins go nuts. Two things House and Cuddy quickly learn: 1st—the stroller is their best friend. Not only does it serves as a pack mule for all the diapers, snacks and toys that they have to lag around but it also allow them to buckle the boys up so they don't run-off in search of their own adventure. 2nd—In Disney parks, adults are only good for standing in line. In their case, they had to stand in line twice because the twins wanted to ride Dumbo the Flying Elephant, Peter Pan's Flight, Mad Tea Party, and Winnie-the-Pooh's honey pots a couple of times. House has to convince the boys that if they ride everything over and over again they won't get to meet Mickey and his friends. By sun dusk, the twins are wiped out and are contently sleeping in their stroller. While Cuddy is enjoying the quite time, it's House and Jake's turn to have fun. Father and son head off to the Indy Speedway, Splash Mountain, Big Thunder Mountain, and the Space Mountain.

Cuddy is sitting by a park bench waiting for her big boys to return, when she gets a tap on her shoulder from a group Disney 'cast members.' She is informed that she and her family have been randomly selected to enjoy VIP seating for the SpectroMagic parade and the fireworks show. The twins wake up just in time to enjoy not only the parade and the fireworks, but as the VIP family for the night they get to meet & greet all the characters after the parade. Ethan and Charlie are so excited that on their way back to the hotel, the boys decide to shower their parents with slobbery kisses.

_**Later that night  
**_House and Cuddy are lying in bed after a very exhausting but enjoyable night. Cuddy is combing through the brochures planning for tomorrow's itineraries when House asks "Lise, why didn't you answer me when I asked you to marry me the first time?"  
A puzzled Cuddy looks at her husband and replies "I did answer you. I told you that I would marry you after you got better from your gunshot wounds. Don't you remember?"  
"No, not that time. The first time; the night before I left for San Francisco."  
"You never ask me to marry you. You didn't even ask me to come with you to San Francisco."  
"I knew it would be unfair to ask you to come with me if I didn't ask you to marry me so I asked you that night."  
"Greg, I think I would remember if my boyfriend proposed to me on the day I discovered that I'm pregnant with his child."  
"I did. You know after we did it the second or maybe it was the third time. But I did ask you and you just smiled at me."  
"Oh my god! You were serious at that time? I thought you just had a very good orgasm."  
"Well, that too. But, I was serious." House points to Cuddy's engagement ring and says "I used the house down payment that my Oma and Opa gave me to buy you that ring."  
"You bought the ring for me?"  
"Of course. Who did you think I bought it for?"  
"I don't know. You never told me you loved me all throughout college. The most you ever said was you 'liked hanging out' with me. I just assumed that this ring was for St..."  
House interrupts Cuddy and says "I fell in love with you the moment you walked into the library and called me the most egotistical, mega maniacal, misanthropic, and misogynist man you had ever met."  
Cuddy is surprise that House even remembers the words she called him and asks him "how come you never told me you loved me?"  
House shrugs his shoulder and replies "because they're just words and I want my actions to reflect how much you mean to me."  
Cuddy removes her engagement ring and asks "PP is for Party Pants?"  
House nods and adds "you are and will always be '**my one and only party pants**.'"

**THE END**

_**End Note: **__If you enjoy this fic, please drop me a note. I will be taking a few months off, but I'm sure I can be persuaded to write another sequel ;-)_


	40. Chapter 40

**NEWS UPDATE:  
**  
If you haven't already come across it, I've written a sequel to this fic. It's called _**Minor Setback Part III**_. The story picks up about eight months after this story.

Check it out and let me know what you think.


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